


Bawson AUs

by Ellabee15



Series: It's all in the Pitch [4]
Category: Pitch (TV 2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Alternate Universe - Star Trek Fusion, Alternate Universe - Stranger Things Fusion, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-14
Updated: 2017-11-30
Packaged: 2018-09-17 11:20:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 14
Words: 54,029
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9321188
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ellabee15/pseuds/Ellabee15
Summary: A group of Bawson AUs





	1. How Ginny got her Grooze Back

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first 2 chapters of this stories are from Bawson oneshots.

Mike dumped his bag on the bed and glared around the bungalow. At the time Rachel had booked this stupid honeymoon, he'd been too in love to realize how incredibly stupid getting a house over water was. She'd insisted on Tahiti and a house on stilts because it was romantic. But that wasn't taking into account that this house was on fucking stilts. He flopped down and glared at the ceiling, wondering how the hell he was supposed to deal with 18 days of this. He could hear the ocean underneath him and groaned slightly. It was making him dizzy. He'd taken the tickets to their honey moon after Rachel had dumped him at the altar for that asshole to spite her, but it looked like he would be the one punished. There was a yell and splashing noise outside. Mike jerked to his feet and walked out. Looking at the water he saw a woman emerge. The sun was setting and made her almost glow as she swam over to the bungalow directly next to his. She'd jumped out, why, Mike couldn't tell, but she was wearing a wedding dress. 

Just what he needed, he thought to himself as he went back inside. He was stuck in a couple's suite with nothing to look forward to but tons of activities that newlyweds would do and a crazy neighbor who apparently liked to pitch herself into the sea in wedding dresses. 

 

 

 

 

Ginny hadn't changed out of the dress she'd been wearing when she was supposed to marry Trevor; she'd been too full of nervous energy. She'd run. It was incredibly stupid and immature, she knew, but...Trevor had been stifling. He'd already planned out the next 3 years of their lives, without first asking her what she'd wanted. His mother hated her because she was "too spirited" and "will be a terrible mother Trevor." Then she'd had the audacity to be upset at the rehearsal dinner because her mother had brought the man she'd cheated on her dead father with. Trevor had been less than understanding. She should have smiled and pretended to be happy. She should have forced herself to play a part, because that was more important than what she wanted, how she felt. She'd realized, as she'd stood in the entrance of the church, that if she didn't do something, she'd spend the rest of her life pushing aside her feelings for others, suppressing her ideas and desires, putting off her career to support Trevor's. She'd locked eyes with him as she froze, unable to begin her walk down the aisle. It was almost as though he realized what she was about to do before she did because he opened his mouth and shouted her name just before she turned and ran.

She'd run, kicking off her heels and booking it into the limo where their travel itinerary and bags were waiting for them so they wouldn't have anything to do after the reception. For once Ginny had been grateful for Trevor's obsession with plans. She'd asked the driver to take her to the airport. Leaving his bags and the ring, she took her passport and ticket and went to Tahiti. 

She ignored the strange looks she got from being in her wedding dress. She'd arrived at the hotel and checked in. Her bungalow was in an isolated part of the resort and there was only one other close by. She climbed in and looked out at the ocean. She tried to breathe, but she felt herself panicking. She began pacing back and forth, wondering if she'd made a mistake. She and Trevor had their flaws, but maybe she should have talked to him. She made the mistake of turning her phone back on and glimpsed the texts and missed calls before the blood rushed to her ears. She tried to calm herself, but it wasn't helping. She flung the phone into the ocean. Then screamed her frustration and jumped in after it. She looked up, watching as the water closed above her. It was still , calming. She wondered what if would be like to freeze this moment, remain suspended in the calm of the sea. But already her body was going up. Her head broke the surface. She looked around, noting that the sun was setting. She'd made her decision and now she had to live with it. Messy as it was, it had been the right call. She and Trevor wouldn't have worked. She pulled herself up on the dock and glimpsed a man in the bungalow next to hers turning away from her. She looked up at the sky, laughing as she thought what her wedding planner, Amelia, would say if she saw the ruins she'd made of herself. She could feel the makeup running down her face and her dress was becoming stiff with the salt water. She stood and climbed up into the bungalow and peeled off the dress, wiping her face and stepped into the shower for. Feeling the weight of the day's events on her shoulders, she collapsed on the bed. She'd deal with the consequences of her actions when she went home. For now...she had 18 days of unplugging herself from the world and figuring out who she wanted to be. 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike hated this place. Everywhere were couples or people with kids. It was almost as though the entire resort was in on some secret plan to mock the only lonely man in the place. He stabbed at his breakfast, taking his frustration out on his bacon. There was a commotion at the door and he glanced up to see the woman from last night, wearing workout clothes. She was smiling and sweaty, having clearly just finished a run and almost collided with a family of four. 

"Ginny?" The mother's eyes widened. "Ginny Baker?" 

Wedding dress woman gave her a small smile. "Evelyn." 

"How've you been?" Evelyn grabbed Ginny Baker and pulled her into a hug. "We're sorry we couldn't make it to the wedding." She stopped the hug abruptly and pulled back. "Is this your honeymoon? Where's Trevor?" The question made a shadow pass over Ginny's face. Mike looked at her with renewed interest; she wasn't wearing a ring and she'd clearly been alone the night before when she'd taken a swan dive into the ocean. 

Before Ginny could answer, a member of the hotel staff walked over and said something to Evelyn's husband. 

"Babe we've got that appointment." He said. 

"Right, the sea turtles." Evelyn rolled her eyes. "Well, we are having dinner tonight where you will show us all the pictures and give me all the details." 

"I can be spared the details." The husband said, pulling Ginny into a bear hug. "You look good, Gin." 

"Of course she does." Evelyn said. "She's on her honeymoon." Ushering her sons and husband out, she hugged Ginny before leaving. Ginny stayed, rooted in place for a few seconds before a look of...Mike wouldn't say it was calm, more like resignation, crossed her face. She walked over to the breakfast buffet and began heaping eggs, bacon, fruit and a waffle on her plate. She was beautiful, that much was undeniable and mysterious enough to distract Mike from his misery. It was also quite clear that she was going through some kind of personal struggle, which helped him immensely. At least he wouldn't be the only lonely person in this tropical land of couples and families. She froze and looked up, her eyes meeting Mike's and he realized he'd been caught. Her eyes narrowed. 

"What?" She asked. "Never seen a woman eat before?" 

"Well I imagine it takes a lot of energy to jump into the ocean in Vera Wang." He shot back. She looked momentarily surprised. He smirked. "What, never met a man who knew what a Vera Wang looked like?" 

"Not one who learned it willingly." She walked over and paused next to his table. "And I definitely didn't expect it from a man who wears plaid on a tropical island." She tilted her head. "You're the man from the bungalow next to mine." She frowned, running her hand over her chin. "Though you didn't have that last night." She meant the stubble. Mike had decided to stop shaving in defiance of Rachel who'd always hated anything resembling a 5 o'clock shadow. 

"And you're the crazy lady who screams before diving into the water fully clothed." 

She shrugged. "How else am I going to get people to remember me?" 

Mike suppressed a smile as she sat across from him. "What makes you think I want company?" 

"You clearly don't." Ginny shrugged. "But neither do I. This way, people will think we're talking to each other and won't engage us in conversation. We can ignore the world in peace." 

Mike had to admit her plan had pretty sound logic. "I guess your idea also has the added bonus of making it look like you're sharing that plate." He motioned to her food. She rolled her eyes. "Although," he looked at the bacon. "I do require a toll." He snatched a strip from her plate. She gaped at him. 

"So that's how it's gonna be." 

"Uh huh." Mike smirked as he took a bite. "Mm. Food is so much better when it's stolen." 

Ginny rolled her eyes and grabbed her fork, digging into her plate. They ate in companionable silence. It was nice, Mike realized, to just be able to sit with someone and not say anything. She finished in record time and reached for her coffee. 

"So." She said, standing. "Same time tomorrow?" 

She was leaving, Mike shrugged. "As long as you're able to pay the toll." 

"Sure..." She trailed off. "I don't even known your name." 

"Mike." He said, holding out his hand. "Mike Lawson." 

"Ginny Baker." She smiled, shaking his hand. "Well Mike it's been fun ignoring people with you." She turned and almost slammed into a member of the hotel staff. 

"Mr. and Mrs. Lawson." He smiled at them. "Your couple's spa day is set to begin in 5 minutes. I'm here to lead you to the spa." 

"Oh." Ginny seemed taken aback. "I'm not-" 

Mike had no idea why, but he found himself smiling at the staff member. "We just need one second." The staff member backed away, hoovering about 5 feet away. "I don't know if you have plans, but my..." He wasn't sure how to define Rachel at this point and he didn't want to explain the fiasco of his failed wedding to her. "I don't think I want to be alone for this and I'm going to look like an idiot if I'm by myself." 

Ginny glanced at the hotel staffer before looking at Mike. "What was your back up plan if I hadn't invaded your table?" 

"Didn't think that far." Mike said. 

She nodded, before turning to the hotel staffer. "I'm sorry, my husband didn't tell my about this." She turned and gave him a smile that made Mike's stomach flop. "He's such a sap, surprising me with a spa day." 

"That I am." Mike said, shaking his head and getting to his feet. 

"I just wish." Ginny got closer to him. "That you would have warned me before I got all sweaty." She put a hand on his chest before turning to the staffer. "Gotta keep in shape to keep up with this one." 

"Too much information." Mike mumbled as the poor man in front of them flushed. 

"Sorry." Ginny whispered. 

"If you'll follow me." 

 

 

 

 

Whoever the real Mrs. Lawson was, Ginny thought as she shut her eyes and let the masseuse work their magic, she had no idea what she was missing.

"So, how did you two meet?" The man massaging Mike asked.

"Uh." Mike looked over at her in alarm. Ginny rolled her eyes.

"Baby," she cooed. "Come on, you remember." She smiled at her masseuse. "He's always forgetting." 

"I didn't forget." Mike grumbled. "You just like to think you tell it better." 

"That's because I do." Ginny smirked, getting into the game they were playing. "We were waiting for the same bus and it was pouring." 

"It wasn't that bad." Mike mumbled. 

"And he offered me his umbrella." Ginny ignored him.

"And she said, 'I'm so grateful, I could kiss you'." Mike said in a falsetto. 

"That is not what I said, or what I sound like." Ginny rolled her eyes. She looked over at him. "But it was one of those moments where suddenly everything becomes clear...I don't know why I did it, but...I kissed him." 

Mike was looking at her, slightly dazed. "And then the sun came out." He added. "So I had to get her number." 

"That is so romantic." The woman massaging Ginny's shoulders said. 

"Yeah." Mike said, looking down at the ground. "It is." 

Ginny swallowed and put her head back down. The rest of the massage continued in silence. After an hour they were given robes and left to wander around the spa. "So." Mike said, as they went over to the hot tub. "That was an interesting story." 

Ginny scoffed. "Yeah, well you fake married a smart woman." She smirked. "I had to make something up, seeing as you were gaping at them like a fish." 

"I was not." Mike said. 

"Were too." She mimed opening and closing her mouth. Mike let out a surprised barking laugh. They entered the sauna. Ginny gulped and wrapped the robe a bit tighter around herself. She hadn't been wearing anything under the robe. Mike's expression said he was probably in the same predicament. 

"Toss me one of those towels." He said. "And I won't look if you don't." Ginny nodded, grabbing two of the towels. Tossing him one, she turned her back and waited until she heard Mike fumbling with the sash before slipping out of her robe and wrapping herself with the towel. 

"I'm good." She said. 

"Me too." Mike responded. They turned, looking at each other. Ginny motioned towards the bench. They sat, Ginny fiddled with the edge of her towel before asking:

"So where is the real, Mrs. Lawson?" 

Mike glared down at his hands. "There is no Mrs. Lawson." He mumbled. Ginny winced. More silence. She'd felt relaxed after the massage, but a tension had set in ever since they'd made up their fake story about how they'd met and she didn't know what to do. 

"She left me." He said. "This was supposed to be our honeymoon, but..." He exhaled. "She realized she'd rather be marrying the man she was cheating on me with...and she told everyone that at the church." 

Ginny gulped. He'd been left at the altar...like she'd done to Trevor. Her blood ran cold, even with the heat of the sauna. She felt guilty. No, she told herself. Not like she'd done to Trevor. That had been a question of the survival of her sanity and independence. What this woman had done to Mike was inexcusable. 

"I'm sorry." She said. Mike ran his hands over his knees. 

"The problem is, she booked us for every damn activity they have here." He put back his head, looking at the ceiling. "I suppose that should have been a clue that something was wrong. It was almost as though she wanted us to be too busy to spend any real time together." 

Ginny thought of her and Trevor's complete lack of itinerary and how he'd jokingly declared that he hadn't planned on letting her out of his sight and his bed. Not theirs, his. The thought sent a wave of nausea through her and she braced herself on the wooden bench of the sauna. "If you need someone to make you look like less of a weirdo loner..." She heard herself begin to say and stopped, letting her offer hang. She'd probably over stepped. She could feel Mike's eyes on her as he examined her thoughtfully. 

"I might take you up on that." He said softly. "That is, if you can stand to pretend to be Mrs. Lawson." 

Ginny let out a surprised laugh. "Well, it'll be difficult, but I think I can suffer through it." 

 

 

 

 

 

He was probably out of his mind, he thought to himself as he fiddled with his tie. The restaurant Rachel had made reservations for was the fanciest the resort had to offer and didn't allow people to enter without nice clothes. He sighed, scrubbing a hand over his face. He was definitely crazy. Ginny was obviously running from something. The woman they'd run into that morning had mentioned a honeymoon, yet Ginny had shown no indication that she was with anyone else. Maybe that was why he was so willing to open up to her; she seemed like she was familiar with loneliness and being hurt by people close to her. 

He walked out of his bungalow. Ginny was already on the dock, wearing a short, black dress, her hair out and falling down her shoulders. She turned and smiled. "Hey." 

He forced a smile on his face. "Hey yourself."

They walked in silence to the restaurant. When they got there, they were seated immediately. 

"Can I interest you in the wine list?" The waiter asked. Mike was relieved that his look of panic was mirrored in Ginny's eyes. 

"Whatever red you'd recommend." She smiled at him and glanced over at Mike who nodded. They both laughed as soon as the waiter left them alone with the menus. 

"Terrible at ordering wine?" He asked. Ginny nodded, looking at the menu. 

"I only drink it with my friend Evelyn and she's an expert so I never have to make my own choices." She said. "I'm usually a beer kinda girl." Mike's eyebrows went up. 

"After my own heart." He looked at the menu. "My..." the word ex stuck in his throat. "She handled all the wine orders. But she always liked white." He settled on the steak and shut the menu. Ginny did the same. The waiter came back, breaking the tension the mention of Rachel had created. "I feel like I've spilled enough of my guts." He accepted the glass of wine he handed to him. "What's your tragic origin stories." 

"My parents were murdered leading me to begin a crusade against crime to avenge their deaths." She smirked, but the joke fell a little forced. She took a sip of her glass, waiting for the waiter to leave. "You might not like me much when I tell you." 

"Really?" Mike tilted his head. "Why do you say that?" Ginny exhaled and seemed to be about to say something, but shook her head. 

"No reason." She said. "There's not much to say. I'm North Carolina, coming to the tropics to escape my problems." 

"Man trouble?" Mike asked. 

"What is it with men assuming everything is about them?" Ginny said. "As though women weren't capable of existing in a world where our every action didn't revolve around a man." 

"See," Mike said. "I'd believe you, but then there's the wedding dress thing." 

"Ah." Ginny picked up her glass. "Because of course, that dress had to be for a man." 

Mike opened his mouth, then closed it, chastened. "Sorry, I shouldn't have made assumptions."

"No you shouldn't." Ginny took a sip of her wine. "But it is man trouble that I'm avoiding." She met his eyes with a smug look of satisfaction. She'd set him up, hook, line and sinker. He couldn't help but laugh. Somewhere in the back of his mind he noticed it was the first time since the wedding that he'd felt this unburdened. "It's...complicated." She murmured. 

"Complicated how?" He said. Ginny hesitated. "Don't hold out on me."

She ducked her head. "I don't know if I'm ready to talk about it." She said, her voice soft. "I'm still trying to figure things out myself." 

Whatever had gone wrong with this man had clearly affected her deeply and Mike knew better than to press. The waiter came and took their order. 

"So, what do you do when you're not eating mountains of food?" Mike asked. 

"Sport's writer." Ginny said. "At least I'm trying to be. I actually had this amazing internship lined up, but..." She paused. Mike waited for her to continue. "It's in Sam Diego and..." She stopped again. "It's the opportunity of a life time." 

"What's stopping you?" He asked. 

She looked at her fingers. "Well for one thing, it's on the other side of the country and I don't know anyone there." 

"That's where you're wrong." Mike smiled, leaning back. "I live in San Diego." 

"Really?" Ginny looked at him in surprise. 

"Yup," He shrugged. "Part time, anyways. I'd moved to LA..." He stopped, not wanting to mention Rachel. "But my work keeps me moving. I've got two clinics that specialize in sport's related injuries." He shrugged. "If you decide to move to San Diego I promise to give you an exclusive. I've got ins with all the major California sport's teams and lots of other famous athletes." 

She picked at the napkin in front of her, seeming to think about it. "I don't..." She exhaled, before meeting his eyes. "Thank you, but I don't want to be dependent on anyone." 

"Dependent?" Mike was taken aback. "I didn't mean it like that." He'd never expected anything for his offer and he wondered why Ginny would believe otherwise. She was young, what could possibly have happened that she thought there would be strings attached. "I don't need anything, hell I feel like I owe you." He leaned back. "There are probably way better things you could be doing than hanging out with me." 

Ginny smiled. "Well the fancy food helps." 

The rest of the meal passed relatively easily. They had both played baseball as kids (Ginny quickly set him straight on the fact that yes, she'd played baseball not softball) He'd had to stop because he'd messed his leg up during a college game and she'd let the game lapse somewhere around middle school. She still loved sports and pitched to her friends every now and again (apparently she could throw a pretty mean screw ball, something he had to see) and was a Padres fan. He learned she had an older brother, Will. She liked music and dancing. On his part, Mike had no problem telling silly stories about his time playing college ball and the injury to his knee that cost him his shot at being a professional ballplayer. 

"You scared that poor waiter." Mike remarked as they walked back to their respective bungalows. Ginny pouted.

"I specifically asked for no cilantro." She looked up at the sky. "I hate cilantro." 

"You know, I may have figured that out sometime during that speech you gave him." Mike laughed as she grimaced. 

"I should apologize." 

"Eh, I tipped him pretty well." He shook his head. "It was the most eloquent rant on an herb I've ever heard." 

She took a mock bow. "It's a beautiful night." She said, moving away from him to spin. Mike had to agree. The moon was full and it added to the lanterns that lit the docks. Ginny looked ethereal as she looked up at the sky. Then an impish look of glee over took her expression. "Wanna go for a swim?" She asked. 

Mike shook his head. "There's probably sharks in the water." 

"Not a chance." Ginny motioned towards the edge of the lagoon. "They've got some type of netting that keeps the sharks out." 

"Right, because that worked so well in Jaws 3." 

"There was a Jaws 3" Ginny asked. "Wait, there was a Jaws 2?" 

"How old are you?" Mike asked. "There were 4" 

Ginny's eyebrows arched. "4?" She said slowly. "Let me guess; you went to see everyone." 

"Yup." He smirked. "They got so bad, it was like piece of modern performance art, you have to watch them." He looked at the ocean. 

"You're stalling, old man." Ginny smirked. 

"No, I'm just looking out for you." Mike said. "The rule states that the pretty girl who jumps into the water gets eaten first." 

Ginny's eyes practically lit up. "You think I'm pretty?" She teased. Mike shoved his hands his pockets and didn't respond. She put her hand on his arm. "Come on." She said, tugging him to the edge of the dock. "Be spontaneous with me." She grinned and Mike had truly never seen such a dazzling smile. He was so distracted that he didn't notice she'd pushed him until he was flailing his arms in the air and crashing into the water. The first thing he'd heard when he emerged was the sound of Ginny's laughter. He spit out a mouthful of water and splashed her. She jumped in after him, splashing him right back. He watched as she floated, shaking every two seconds with laughter. 

"I had fun tonight." he said, earnestly as they walked outside her bungalow. She smiled, pushing her hair out of her eyes.

"Me too, Mike." She turned and walked to her door. 

"Um, Dolphins." He blurted out. She turned and arched an eyebrow. "Rachel had us booked to swim with dolphins tomorrow." He muttered. Ginny nodded. 

"You'd better shave then, cuz that thing on your face might scare them." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ginny arrived first on the beach, kicking at the sand and enjoying the feeling of sun on her shoulders. 

"Hey, Ginny." A voice called from behind her. She turned to look at Mike who was carrying something in his hand. "Think fast." He tossed her a baseball. She caught it, smirking as she rolled it in her hand. "I figured we could run a few pitches afterwards." He said as he stopped next to her. She realized he was holding a catcher's glove. "See if you can really throw a screwball." 

"You sure your knees can handle it?" She asked, teasing. Mike rolled his eyes, running his fingers over the glove. Ginny snorted as she took in the giant "Welcome to Tahiti" on the side. 

"Hey, it was all they had in the gift shop." Mike muttered. Ginny gripped the ball, letting her muscles readjust to the feel of leather between her fingers. 

"I guess this'll have to do." She said. 

"Oh you guess." Mike scoffed. 

"Come on." She pulled at his arm. "Don't you have some aquatic mammals to traumatize with your face hair?" The beard was still there. Mike ran a hand over his jaw. 

"Hey, I really like this." He said. "I might keep it after I get back to San Diego." 

"You look like you should be living in a cave." Ginny muttered as they walked over to the dolphin enclosure. 

"Hey, whatever keeps me out of the rain." Mike shot back. 

"Fire must have been very exciting for you." Ginny remarked. 

Mike hummed in amusement. 

 

 

 

 

Ginny had laughed for almost an hour after one of the dolphins snorted water in Mike's face after coming into contact with his jaw. 

"It's not funny." He muttered as they went up to lunch. 

"Depends what side of the dolphin you were on." Ginny said.

"Uh huh." Mike said. "We'll see who's laughing after we see that screwball of yours."

Ginny tapped her chin. "Hmm. Still going to be me."

"Then let's make this interesting." Mike said. "Pitch 5 balls straight to my glove and I'll let you decide what we do after dinner tonight." 

"Who says I was planning on having dinner with you?" The second she said it, she regretted it. The look of pure disappointment and resignation on Mike's face was heart breaking. "Kidding, Mike." She said. "When I win..." She tilted her head. "We're going dancing." 

Mike scoffed. "I don't dance, Ginny." 

"Well then, you better learn." She tossed the ball in the air, catching it and grinning at him. "Because I plan to teach you a lesson in humility, Mike Dolphin terror Lawson." 

"That dolphin was trying to communicate with me." Mike grumbled. "He was trying to say that you aren't as funny as you think you are." 

"Figures that you would have learned how to speak dolphin, what with having a mouthful of its germs after it came in contact with that jaw wire you call a beard." Ginny shot back. 

Mike blinked. "You're mean when you're hungry." He muttered. "Though considering how much you eat-"

"Hey." Ginny laughed, playfully shoving him. He grabbed her around the waist.

"I will feed you to the dolphins." He said.

"They don't eat people." She shot back as she struggled against him. "Didn't you learn that listening to Jaws on your radio when you were a kid? Or did you not have reception in the mountains?" Mike scoffed and loosened his hold, leaving his arm around her waist as they walked into the blissfully air conditioned dining area. Ginny let out a small contented sigh. It had been a while since she'd felt this free, this unencumbered and had so much fun. 

"AUNT GINNY" 

She nearly had the air knocked out of her as Gabe and Marcus tackled her. Mike looked at them in shock and amusement. 

"Boys." She gasped as they hugged her, looking around for Evelyn feeling a small prickle of nervousness. Evelyn didn't know about the wedding disaster...and she had Trevor's number. "Where are your parents?" 

"Right here." Evelyn's eyes were narrowed as she took in Mike standing next to Ginny. "Boys, let her breathe." 

Ginny swallowed nervously before smiling. "Hey, Ev." 

"Hey, Ginny." She looked at her. "Are you doing okay?" 

"Yeah." Ginny shrugged. "Just going to lunch." 

"I can see that." Evelyn said. "Boys, go over to your dad." 

They pouted and backed away from Ginny before going over to a far table where Blip was sitting. Evelyn smiled at Mike. "I don't think we've met. Evelyn Sanders and you must be the reason Ginny ran away from her fiance in the middle of their wedding." 

Mike's entire figure tensed as he looked at her. "Ginny?" He asked softly. 

"Evelyn." Ginny growled. 

"I talked to Trevor yesterday." Evelyn said. "I wanted to ask him if you two wanted to have dinner together... but he told me he was in North Carolina trying to figure out what to do with all your wedding presents because you never even made it into the church before bolting." She put her hands on her hips. "What happened?" 

"I should go." Mike mumbled, walking away. 

"Mike, wait." Ginny said. He looked at her, hurt evident in his eyes, then turned and kept walking. Ginny looked back at Evelyn. "That was unnecessary." 

"Unnecessary?" Evelyn said. "Three days ago you were supposed to commit yourself to Trevor and you ran away and now you're doing I don't know what with some random guy." 

"He's..." Ginny shook her head. "Trevor and I..." She swallowed. "Evelyn, he was..." 

"Was what?" Evelyn asked. 

"He didn't love me, okay?" She shouted. "He loved this version of me and we'd been together for so long and I was tired, Ev. Tired of trying to get him to see me, accept me, understand me. He was already naming our kids and completely dismissed my career, because his was more important and was planning on moving us to Arizona and had bought the house, the furniture. I didn't even..." She let out a humorless laugh. "I didn't even get to pick my own damn wedding dress because his mother told me what he would want to see me in and bought it for me." Evelyn's arms wrapped around her and she led her out of the dining room into a hall. Ginny pressed her forehead against her friend's shoulder. 

"Honey why didn't you say anything?" 

"Because everyone was so happy for us." Ginny mumbled. "I thought...I thought something was wrong with me for not being happy too." She could feel tears threatening to spill out of her eyes. "I just...I saw him at the end of the aisle and...I realized I wasn't happy, I was scared. I shouldn't be scared of my husband, I should love him." She looked at her hands. "So I ran." 

Evelyn pulled her into a hug. 

 

 

 

 

Mike found himself at the tennis courts, using the ball machine as a baseball delivery service. The resort was apparently planning on adding batting cages, but hadn't expanded yet. So he was left to look like an idiot in the middle of the tennis court with a baseball bat, swinging at tennis balls. He didn't know why he was so upset about; he'd only known Ginny for a few days and yet...the fact that he'd traveled all this way to get away from the reality of Rachel leaving him only to stumble on another person who'd done the same thing was just his rotten luck. So he kept swinging, ignoring the wrongness of the weight of a tennis ball hitting the bat and the weird noise it made. He focused on the rhythm of the swing and the motion of his shoulders. Letting the noise of the machine drown out the sound of Ginny's laughter as the dolphin snorted in his face. Then he remembered something else...Ginny's scream before she'd jumped into the water in her wedding dress. The fearful way she'd danced around her personal life and her quick assumption that his offer of helping her in San Diego would come at a price. There was more going on than met the eye. She was trying to escape something as much as he was. Why else would she be in a tennis court 3 rows down from him, hurling tennis balls at a wall? He froze, looking over his shoulder and confirming that, yes she was doing just that...except she wasn't throwing; she was pitching. He lowered his bat and watched as she pulled her leg up and hurled a ball directly at the wall, the tennis ball bouncing. She picked up another from the ground next to her, centered herself, then threw again. Mike was spell bound, so much so that he forgot about the automatic ball machine until it beaned him in the neck. He glared at it and shut it off. 

Either Ginny hadn't noticed him, or she was ignoring him. She continued, her focus on a spot on the wall. "Again." She whispered through gritted teeth. "Again." He glanced at the floor of his court where the abandoned glove and baseball were lying. A part of him wanted to walk over there and offer to catch for her, but something held him back. Instead he backed away and cleaned up the tennis balls. Putting them into the dispenser, he left the court. 

He avoided her the next day, going to breakfast when she was on her run and hiding himself in a random quiet room where people came to read with an ocean view. 

"You're Mike, right?" 

He looked up from the random magazine he'd picked up to look busy. Evelyn's husband was standing in front of him. "Blip Sanders, I think you met my wife yesterday." 

"Yeah." Mike replied, holding out his hand. "Mike Lawson." 

"Mind if I sit here?" He asked, motioning to the seat next to Mike. "I'm hiding from my kids. You bring them to an island vacation and all they can do is complain it's not Disney world." 

Mike nodded. Blip sat and looked out at the ocean. Silence fell. Mike found himself wondering if it was a coincidence that Blip found him, and if not, why he wasn't just saying what he wanted to say. He and Evelyn were obviously close to Ginny if their boys referred to her as "Aunt Ginny." He wondered how they'd met. He wondered how Ginny was doing. He wanted to know more about this Trevor. The silence was making him itch. 

"Do you know..." He stopped as Blip looked over at him. "I mean..." He wasn't sure what he was trying to ask. "When-" 

"Evelyn was Ginny's RA her freshman year of college." Blip said, seeming to know exactly what Mike wanted to know. "She and I were already a thing. She found her after..." he paused, sighing. "Look, man. Ginny's been through some pretty tough times. Tougher than any 23 year old should have to deal with. I'm not going to tell you about them, because it's not my place, but I see her as my little sister." He drummed his fingers on the arm of his chair. "And she's never smiled the way she was smiling with you yesterday, not even with Trevor."

"What happened with them?"

"Honestly, I don't know." Blip said. "I never thought he was going to be more than a college boyfriend, but all of a sudden she's there with a ring on her finger and talking about moving to Arizona even though she'd gotten the opportunity of a lifetime in San Diego." He shook his head. "Sometimes I wonder if he didn't offer to marry her to make sure he could keep her." He looked at Mike. "I'm sorry if Ev scared you away, she's a bit..."

"Terrifying?" Mike supplied. Blip smirked.

"She's protective." He corrected. "And she doesn't want you to think less of Ginny because of her."

 

 

 

 

 

It was Ginny's third day at the tennis courts. Her days had taken on a type of routine. Run, breakfast, hang out with the boys so Ev and Blip could have some alone time. Lunch. Pitch until she was hungry or the sun came down or she was tired. 

"You call that a screwball?" A voice said from behind her. She lost her balance and her pitch went wild. She turned to see Mike leaning against the entrance of the doorway, holding two gloves and a baseball. 

"I call that being distracted." She said. "And have you ever tried pitching with a tennis ball?" 

Mike snorted and tossed her a glove. Walking towards the opposite end of the court, he squatted down, holding his glove in front of him. She pulled on the glove and rolled the ball in her hand. Concentrating on Mike's glove, she took a deep breath and let the ball loose, hitting it directly in the center of his glove. There was a momentarily look of surprise on his face, which was transformed into a look of encouragement. He tossed her the ball back, Ginny pitched again. Mike caught it, looking down at the ball before shaking his head and throwing it back. "That is definitely a screwball." He said. 

"Don't sound so shocked." Ginny said, throwing. The ball went straight to the center of Mike's glove. He tossed it back. Ginny pitched. It went a little more to the left, but Mike caught it anyway. Tossing it back. He waited for her next pitch. She bit the inside of her mouth and threw. It hit his glove again. 

"That's 5." He said softly. Ginny blinked. He was looking at her with apprehension. Right, the bet he'd made. She looked at the ground. 

"I'm guessing Evelyn talked to you." She murmured. 

"Blip, actually." Mike said. "Nice guy." 

"Yeah." Ginny mumbled. Pulling the glove off her hand, walked over to Mike with the full intention of handing it back. Whatever Blip had told him had probably made him feel sorry for her. Mike looked at her, bemused. 

"You done already?"

"You just feel bad for me." She said. 

"No." He said. "I feel bad for myself." He tilted his head. "I'm a bit self obsessed, especially considering current events. I mean..." he sighed. "Ginny, I admit that when Evelyn said you'd walked out on your fiance at the altar, I..." 

"Freaked out?" Ginny supplied. Mike huffed. 

"I did not freak out." He muttered. "I..." he sighed. "I...I just automatically assumed you did it for the same reasons she did. I should have listened to your side of things before making assumptions. Hell, it's probably the reason my marriage didn't happen." He shifted. "It was a lot easier to be miserable and alone with you. So in the interest of being extremely selfish, I'm sorry and will you please pretend to be my wife again?"

Ginny tilted her head. "We're going dancing tonight." She said.

Mike grimaced. "Right." He said. "We're doing that." He sighed. "Why didn't you go pro?"

Ginny bit her lip, "I chose the dress." She said.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The resort's night club was loud and obnoxious. Mike felt old, surrounded by drunken 20 somethings that were laughing and drinking. The whole point of getting married to Rachel was so he wouldn't have to do this anymore. Then Ginny slammed into his side, full force. 

"Come on, Mr. Lawson." She teased, tugging on his arm. "You said you'd dance." 

He sighed, hating the song that was playing. "This isn't music, it's the soundtrack to an aneurysm." He muttered as she pulled him onto the dance floor. Ginny couldn't dance. At least not the way the other women in the club were dancing. She didn't care who was watching her. Mike froze, content to simply watch the lights on her as she swung her head and grinned at him. 

"You're still not moving." She said. He side stepped. "Mike." She groaned. 

The song stopped and Mike let out a sigh of relief that was quickly replaced by a feeling of dread as a slow song began. Ginny moved closer, swaying slowly. Mike held her close, moving with her slowly. "Our song was going to be Bleeding love." She mumbled. She meant Trevor. Mike swallowed.

"Sounds violent." 

She hummed. 

"Ours was going to be Beauty and the Beast." He said. She tilted her head, a lazy smile on her lips. 

"That was pre beard?" 

"Really funny." He said. They moved off the dance floor, out onto the balcony, still dancing. The cool night air blew in Mike's face and Ginny shivered. 

"I would've never pegged you for a Disney guy." 

"I am full of surprises." He replied, suddenly aware of how much closer she'd gotten. She looked up and met his eyes, a smile teasing the corner of her lips, her dimples peeking out. Her eyes were wide and sparkled. 

"So, what would you choose for our song?" She asked. He gaped at her. "What? It might come up over the next few days and how stupid would it be if I said something beautiful and romantic and you went for whatever Mozart opera was popular in your day." 

Mike leaned his head on her shoulder as she laughed. They stayed that way for a few minutes before Ginny murmured. "Mike." 

"Yeah?" 

"Song's over." 

He knew, he just didn't want to let go just yet. "Is it?" 

She chuckled. "I guess not." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They were avoiding the expiration date on this...whatever it was. Ginny didn't know how to describe it but somehow she couldn't imagine what her life had been before this. The fact that she'd have to return home in 4 days to deal with Trevor was...she woke up almost every night in cold sweat, unable to breathe because of it. Mike seemed to notice tat something was up, but he was sullen too; his own demons weighing on him. 

"You call that a pitch?" He snapped as one of her throws went to the left. She glared at him. 

"Oh I'm sorry. Was it hard on your knees?" 

"Maybe." He said. "If I'm going to be risking my health, you might try to put in some effort, Ginny." 

She through the glove onto the ground. "What the hell is up with you?" She asked. 

"Me, you're the one who's been acting like a spoiled brat." He said. "Or do you think I forgot about yesterday when you splashed my food?" 

"That was an accident and who eats next to the pool?" Ginny asked. 

"I do." 

"Oh, right. You do that at home, sorry. I forgot that a commoner like me doesn't understand the intricacies of pool etiquette like you, your beardness." She pretended to curtsy. There was a flicker of amusement in Mike's eyes.

"Beardness?" He asked his eyes crinkling in amusement.

She snorted, covering her mouth. "I don't know, it just came out." She muttered. Mike burst out laughing. She tried not to join him, but it was ridiculous. "I think it's sapping bloodflow to your brain, old man." She said, gasping. "We're supposed to be fighting."

"Why?" Mike asked. 

"I don't know, you started it." Ginny couldn't help the petulant response but Mike accepts the criticism with a pained nod. 

"I...I don't want..." He hesitated. "I go back in 4 days and...I-" 

"Ginny." 

The voice came from the other side of the court and Ginny froze, not wanting to turn. If she turned it made him real. If she kept looking at Mike, maybe she could convince herself that it had been a figment of her anxious imagination. But one look at Mike's face confirmed her worst fears; he was there. 

"Who's that?" He asked. Ginny turned slowly. 

"Trevor." She said. She could feel Mike get closer to her, not so he was touching her, but close enough that she would know he'd spring into action if need be. Trevor noticed this and his eyes narrowed at Mike before he turned his attention to Ginny.

"Do you have any idea what you've done?" He asked. 

"I'm sorry." 

"You're sorry?" Trevor said. "You embarrassed me in front of everyone. How could you do that?" 

Ginny's eyes narrowed. "So you're more upset about the embarrassment than the fact that I was more comfortable running away from you than being married to you?" 

Trevor's eyes flickered to Mike before coming back to Ginny. "I think we need to talk about how we're going to fix this." He said. He gave Mike another pointed look before adding, "alone." 

Ginny looked back at Mike and gave him a small grimace, handing him back the glove and baseball. "Hold on to these for me." She mumbled, turning to glare at Trevor before walking off the court. The nervousness she'd been fighting for the last three nights came back full force, drying her throat and making her mouth feel as though she'd swallowed acid. She wanted to wait until they'd put enough distance between them and Mike but the second they were barely out of earshot, Trevor began speaking. 

"Who was that guy, Ginny?" 

"He's..." She struggled to find the right word for him. "I met him here, he's in the bungalow next to mine." She didn't miss the slight flare in Trevor's nostrils as she said "mine" instead of "ours" or "yours". She felt sick. How could she have ever believed she was in love with him? She didn't want to discuss Mike.

"Did you sleep with him?" 

"No." She was taken aback by the ferocity of her response. Trevor seemed to search her eyes to see whether or not she was lying. Whatever he saw seemed to satisfy him. 

"Good." He said, nodding, looking away from her. "We can still fix this. You're coming back with me. You can tell everyone you were..." He motioned towards her head. She took a step back. 

"Were what?" She asked. 

"Come on, Gin." He said. "It's not like it was a secret that you were in therapy freshman year." 

Not a secret? How many people had he told? Had he gone home and told his family about his poor damaged girlfriend with the dead father. "Because my dad had just died." Ginny said, her disgust growing. "This isn't my fault." 

"You ran out on our wedding." Trevor growled. "How isn't this your fault?" 

"Because you forced me into that position." She said. "You used me to be your perfect trophy wife and never bother to care, really care about the real me. So you do not get to use my vulnerabilities to explain away something you screwed up." 

"Ginny." He said, using that tone that said if she was only sensible, she'd see things his way. 

"We're done, Trevor." She said. "I don't want to fix this. You can't fix something that was never whole to begin with." She turned and walked away leaving him behind. 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike had his feet in the water, sitting on the dock next to this bungalow. There was the sound of approaching steps, then Ginny plopped next to him. 

"So...that's Trevor." he said. 

"He's gone." She said, putting her feet in the water, splashing his shorts. He waited, letting her decide what to tell him. "I was in therapy." She mumbled. "After my dad died. It was a dark time, I...I threw myself so deeply into school to get away from the..." She swallowed. "I was in the car when it happened and sometimes I would get flashbacks. One day...my roommate, Cara. She found me in shower, the water on, crying with all my clothes on. The water flooding the bath tub." She laughed humorlessly. "I thought by...forcing the pain down, it would go away, but it didn't." She had tears in her eyes. "It made it worse." 

"I'm sorry." Mike murmured, unsure what to say. She looked at him. 

"I met Trevor...after I started therapy. It was...he was nice and sweet. Funny. We went golfing." She played with the hem of her dress. "He made me smile. So I...I ignored the small warning signs because I wanted to be normal and happy again." She paused again. Mike was taken aback by how weary she looked, despite her youth. "But it's over now." She looked back at him and he could see her armor coming back, protecting herself from the judgement she expected from him. 

"Ginny." He said. "I know...I've only known you a short amount of time, but..." He wasn't sure where he was going with this particular line of thought, but he decided to ride it out, taking her hand. "You're an amazing person and hearing about the things you've gone through only cements that for me." He gave her a small smile. "You blow me away, Ginny Baker." She squeezed his hand, a slight tremor running through her. "And just by being fake married to you, I can tell that any guy that doesn't realize how amazing you are is insane." 

She seemed slightly taken aback, her eyes wide. "You are a rare person, Mike Lawson." She breathed and somehow it was exactly what he'd needed to hear, but she wasn't done. "And for the record. Being fake married to you made me realize that..." She moved closer. He pressed his forehead against hers. 

"That?" He whispered. 

"That you have so much to give to the person you love and that anyone who doesn't see the value of that is crazy." She said. 

"Even if I scare dolphins?" He asked, eliciting one of her full laughs. Her breath tickled his face and he waited. He didn't know if he could close the distance. He still wasn't sure if she wanted to.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ginny brought her her hand up and cupped Mike's jaw, pulling him closer. "Especially when you scare dolphins." She murmured, pressing her lips to his. 

"Ginny." He groaned as she pulled away from him. Getting up, she pulled him to his feet. He seemed dazed, but snapped back into focus as she pulled him into another kiss, pressing herself against him. 

"Come to bed with me." She said. 

He nodded, following her lead as she pulled him into her room. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When Mike got to his empty house in San Diego, he wasn't sure the entire trip hadn't been some bizarre dream. He shut his eyes, remembering Ginny's arms and the brush of her tongue against his as they said goodbye at the airport in Tahiti. She'd left first, her flight taking her to New York, where she'd transfer to go to North Carolina. He wondered what time it was in North Carolina and if it was too soon to call her. He fussed, pacing back and forth, picking up his phone, then putting it down again. He'd been back a solid 8 hours, agonizing about what to do when his phone lit up with a text. 

"In front of some place called Boardner's. Apparently the locals like it? Know any good hotels?" 

He had to read it twice before tapping out a shaky reply. "You're in San Diego?" 

"I'm taking the internship." She replied. 

Mike grinned. "Wait there." He replied. "There's no way you're staying at a hotel."


	2. Paging Dr. Lawson

Mike glared at his locker as he pulled his scrubs over his head. Stretching, he grimaced as his back cracked. Slamming, his locker door shut, he pulled on his lab coat and walked out of the locker room.

"Dr. Lawson." Mike looked up to see his colleague, Dr. Stein, holding a chart and smirking.

"What's that?"

"Good morning to you too." Stein grinned, fanning herself with the folder. "I would be nice to me, considering I'm about to make your day."

"Doubtful." Mike growled, crossing his arms. "Look, I'm about to go on shift."

"No you're not." Stein ran her fingers over the chart. "I'm surprised you aren't watching the Padres game."

Mike leaned against the wall. "I recorded it for later."

Stein nodded, smirking. "So you don't know." She hummed. Mike sighed.

"Look, whatever-" He broke off as the doors burst open and a group of EMT's came through, pulling a gurney. Lying on it, clutching her arm was 5th starting pitcher for the Padres, Ginny Baker. Mike's eyes widened as she was brought past, then turned to look at Stein, who was smirking.

"She's all yours, Lawson." She handed him the folder. "Her agent had her chart sent over from Petco the second she collapsed on the field." Stein shrugged. "I told her you were the best."

Mike took the folder and nodded. "Thanks." He said, following the EMT's. "What do we have?" He asked.

"23 year old female, strained muscle, but there could be more damage."

"Take her to the MRI room." He ordered, looking down at Ginny Baker. "I'm Dr. Lawson, I'll be handling your case." She met his eyes. While her jaw was clenched in pain, her eyes shone in determination. Mike faltered, missing a step and almost tripping. She didn't say anything, but nodded. "It'll be okay." He said, not sure why. She arched an eyebrow.

"You don't know that." She said as she was wheeled into the prep room for the MRI. Mike entered the observation room, waiting for the nurses to bring her in. She walked in, waving off help as she sat herself down on the table. Mike pressed the intercom button.

"Ms. Baker, do you have any metal on you?"

"They already asked me that." She grimaced.

"Legally, I'm supposed to ask one last time to make sure." Mike said. "I need you to lay down for me and stay completely still." He looked at her as she looked at the machine, and fear twisted her features. Then she closed off her expression and lay down. "It's a bit loud." He warned.

"They gave me ear plugs." She murmured, holding them up.

"Yeah, those only help a little." Mike admitted. He watched as Ginny lay down. Pressing the button, he looked at the computer screens as the machine began scanning. After 5 minutes, it still had nothing. "Ms. Baker." He said. "You need to stop moving."

"It's kinda difficult." Her voice was small, hushed. "I've never been good at sitting still."

"I'll bet." Mike said. He'd been in an MRI machine before and the sensation wasn't pleasant. The noise, coupled with the movement of the scanner made it feel like the walls were caving in. And lying on a slab in a confined space was too coffin like to be comfortable. It was also very lonely. "The more you keep moving, the longer this'll take." He said.

She moved again. "I'm in pain, I'm alone and I'm probably facing the end of my career as a ballplayer, so forgive me if lying still isn't my first impulse."

"The pain, there's nothing I can do until we know what's wrong." He said. "And you're not alone, you've got me and my exceptionally handsome face with you. Though you can't see it."

He heard her snort. "As for your career as a ballplayer..." he trailed off. He'd been a life long Padres fan and, like many, a bit skeptical of Ginny when she'd first been called up, but...He'd gone to see one of her games at Petco. She was a good pitcher and had a dedication was undeniable. "I wouldn't worry about that. Many players get injured and still manage to have long and successful careers."

"I'm not many players." It was whispered and Mike barely heard it, but...the statement was almost wistful. She'd stopped moving. Maybe talking to her would distract her enough to finish the scan.

"Damn right. I don't think there's anyone else who can throw a screwball quite like you." He said.

"What does it matter if I can't even make it through a season without fucking up my pitching arm." Ginny muttered. Mike almost laughed.

"America's sweetheart curses." He said. "I am shocked."

"There's plenty of things about me that the gossip blogs get wrong." Ginny said.

"Well don't worry." He said. "I'm bound by doctor patient confidentiality so your potty mouth is safe with me."

She let out a small hum of assent. She'd stopped moving and Mike's narcissism told him it was because of him talking to her. 

"So, what else about Ginny Baker do the gossip blog get wrong?" Mike asked, resolving to distract her. "Is it true you dated Drake?" 

Ginny sighed. "Yeah, because clearly if I talk to a man, I'm dating him." She sounded bitter. 

"Hey, Drake is a decent looking guy." Mike said. 

"Then maybe you should date him." Ginny muttered. 

"Not my type." Mike said and he thought he heard Ginny let out a small laugh. He swallowed as he looked at the scan results. "Okay, Ms. Baker." He said, pressing the button to pull her out. "You're done." He watched as she stiffly sat up and pulled out her earplugs. "The nurse will take you back to your room. I'll look over your results and have an answer for you as soon as possible." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ginny fidgeted on the bed in her hotel as the pain meds kicked in. Amelia was pacing back and forth in front of her. "Where the hell is that doctor?" She snapped. "How long does it take to look at a scan?" 

"He probably wants to be sure." Ginny smiled, thinking of Dr. Lawson. He seemed nice and in the beginning fuzziness of her pain meds, she realized how much easier the MRI had been with him talking her through it. 

"What do you think of him?" Amelia asked. 

"Him?" Ginny asked. "Um, I don't know." She furrowed her brow. "The beard's hard to get past, but over all-" 

"I mean as a doctor." Amelia stopped pacing, and looked at Ginny with amusement. "They really gave you the good stuff, didn't they?" She asked. 

Ginny nodded as the door opened. Dr. Lawson walked in, carrying a chart. Amelia walked straight up to him and took it from him. He blinked in surprise, then tried to grab it back from her. "I'm sorry, but you can't have access to that." He snapped. 

"I'm Ginny's agent." Amelia said, ignoring him as she read. Dr. Lawson looked over at Ginny who shrugged. The high she'd felt from the pain meds was gone, replaced by a tightening feeling of dread in the pit of her stomach. 

"What is it?" She asked. 

"It's not bad." Dr. Lawson said. "But...that doesn't mean it's good." He hesitated. "Ms. Baker, you have a subluxation in your shoulder. It's a partial dislocation. Basically, it disjointed and reset itself. That on it's own wouldn't be too problematic, but I'm also seeing Rotator cuff tendinitis." 

Ginny swallowed. "What does that mean?" 

"Well, firstly your season is over." He said it bluntly. Ginny had been expecting it, but it still took her aback. 

"Will she need surgery?" Amelia asked. Dr. Lawson glanced at her, then turned his attention back to Ginny. 

"No." He said. "No surgery. But you will need to adhere to a physical therapy regimen and rest." He tilted his head. "Is hard work going to be a problem for you?" 

Ginny felt her irritation rise and was about to tear him to shreds when she caught the amused glint in his eyes. He was teasing her. "Oh definitely." She said, grinning up at him. "I'm an extremely lazy person." 

"I figured as much, Ms. Baker." Dr. Lawson sighed. "I don't know what I'm going to do with you, but I'll have to try." 

"I'm sorry to be such a burden for you, Dr. Lawson." Ginny shot back. 

"Well, I took an oath." He said.

Amelia cleared her throat loudly. Ginny almost jumped out of her skin; she'd forgotten she was in the room. The look of surprise that briefly crossed Dr. Lawson's face indicated that he had too. "What type of physical therapy are we talking about here?" She asked. 

"I'll have a schedule drawn up and sent to you, Ms...." 

"Slater." Amelia said. "And you'll be her physical therapist?" She looked at him skeptically. 

"No." He said. "I'll supervise, give her regular check ups, and prescribe the happy pills, but I'm not going to be her physical therapist." He shot Ginny an assessing look. "Here are your discharge papers." He handed them to her. "And a sling for your arm. Avoid all strenuous activity. I'd recommend icing it." Ginny's fingers brushed against his as she took the paper and she felt a jolt race up her arm. 

After that Dr. Lawson left. Amelia stepped out to deal with discharging Ginny and a nurse came in to help her change out of her hospital gown. 

"Your chief caregiver is Lawson?" The nurse said, glancing over the chart. Ginny nodded, confused by the look of pity the response inspired. "Well, he's good at what he does." 

"What does that mean?" Ginny asked. The nurse glanced around at the door before responding. 

"Well you didn't hear it from me, but Lawson's a bit..." She hesitated. "He's Dr. House without the people skills. He's a great doctor, but tends to be...taciturn." 

"Taciturn." Ginny repeated, trying to reconcile this information with the man she'd met that morning. "Well, I'm not here to make friends. I just want to get better so I can pitch. If he can help me, that's fine. I only need his doctor skills." 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike wasn't obsessing over his new patient. Sure, he'd found less things to snipe about because he'd been busy pouring over the footage of her last game (for RESEARCH PURPOSES), and fine he'd also gotten footage from all of her games to review to see how much she'd strained herself (he was a very thorough researcher). So while those things might be true, he definitely hadn't centered his entire day around Ginny Baker's case. 

Except he had. He was sitting in front of his laptop, watching the game when there was a knock on his door and Ginny Baker swept in without waiting for a response. Mike jumped and pulled the screen of his laptop down, shutting off the video. 

"Ms. Baker." He stammered. She looked at him, amused. Mike swallowed, feeling his ears flush as she threw herself down on the chair in front of his desk. 

"No judgement." She leaned back, looking up at the ceiling. "Though I suppose you shouldn't be watching that kind of stuff during work hours." 

"It wasn't." Mike sighed. "I was looking over some game footage to see what we were dealing with." He opened his laptop and showed it to her. Ginny leaned forward and frowned. 

"That's my fourth game." She said. "It was the beginning of the season." 

"And your injury was a result of months of strain." Mike countered. "I've contacted your coach and he told me you push yourself harder than any of the other players." 

"I have to." She said, her voice flat. He grimaced and looked at the image of her on the screen. She was in mid pitch, a look of focus and defiance in her eyes. Of course she had to, he thought to himself, the whole world was watching her, many people waiting for her to screw up. 

"Well..." He fiddled with the papers on his desk. "I set up a meeting with our top physical therapist, you'll need to check in with me about once a week." He gave her a small smile as she let out an irritated huff. "I'm sure that will be the biggest challenge of your life." 

Her expression was suspicious, but when she saw that he was kidding, a small smile ghosted across her face. 

"Ms. Baker..." He said. "I feel I should say that...I'm a huge Padres fan." 

She flinched, pressing herself against the back of her chair as her face took on a more guarded look. She was probably worried that he'd say something to the effect of 'you ruined baseball' or the insane things many other douchey male baseball fans had said. 

"The game's...more fun to watch with you in it." He said. "We'd gotten so used to them losing but now..." He shrugged. "There's a kind of energy that wasn't there before." 

Ginny smiled, a look of relief crossed her face. "Should I be worried that you're some kind of crazy stalker?" 

"Nah." Mike said, leaning back and rubbing a hand along his jaw. "Though would it be inappropriate for me to say that you may be my second most attractive patient?"

Ginny's eyes narrowed. "Second?" She looked insulted. "Who's number one?"

"Leonardo DiCaprio." Mike said. "He came in with a stomach bug he'd gotten on one of his humanitarian missions to a third world country." He looked over at the wall, pretending to be thoughtful. "Beautiful eyes."

Ginny relaxed and laughed. "Now I know I'm insulted." 

"What's wrong with DiCaprio?" Mike asked. 

"Well that depends, old DiCaprio or now DiCaprio. Because current DiCaprio looks like a fish." 

Mike smirked. "Well here, is your PT schedule and I'll take you down to get you started." 

As they walked through the halls of the hospital, Mike didn't fail to notice the way the people would openly gawk at them. He was used to people looking at him, funny; his bad temper was legendary, but they were all completely entranced by Ginny. So much so, that they would stop what they were doing to stare. Ginny seemed fine with it. Her face was closed off and her head held high. Every time she made eye contact with some one, she flashed them a huge smile, that Mike noticed never quite met her eyes. And he noted the way her fingers twitched every few seconds; she was skittish and nervous. He glared at a group of young doctors, particularly the one who was openly checking her out. 

"This is a hospital, not speed dating." He growled. "Don't you guys have lives to save?" 

The doctors looked at the ground and fled. Mike felt a sense of satisfaction, that vanished the second he looked at Ginny. "I don't need you protecting me." She said. "I can handle myself." 

Mike frowned. "I know that." he said, feeling defensive. "But I have a reputation to maintain. How am I supposed to save face around here if they don't fear me?" 

"Well if it's saving face you're worried about, I feel like someone needs to warn you about that beard." 

"That it makes me completely irresistible to women?" He sighed, pressing the button for the elevator. "I know." 

"What works on DiCaprio doesn't necessarily work on anyone else, Dr. Lawson." Ginny retorted. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The guys were crowding her. Ever since the Padres' season had ended, Ginny's life was flooded with her teammates, getting her groceries, bringing her get better presents, sending her gag gifts and embarrassing interruptions in the middle of physical therapy (she'd never forgive Tommy for sending the stripper gram, though it had been worth it for the look on Dr. Lawson's face). It also didn't help that they had all put themselves on "Ginny duty", even going so far as to create a rotating schedule with shifts (orchestrated by Evelyn) that decided who would get groceries, who'd get her coffee, who'd drive her to PT, who'd sit with her in PT and flirt with the nurses, who'd get her lunch, whose house she was coming over for dinner. While she grumbled about them smother her, secretly she was grateful; it was their way of showing her that she was one of them and that they completely expected her to be back with them during spring training. 

Today's Ginny sitters were Al and Sonny. Sonny was showing off pictures of his kids to anyone who'd come close and Al was reading a newspaper, telling her interesting headlines and offering color commentary. Dr. Lawson walked in. 

"So, these are today's bodyguards." He said. He was holding a bouquet of flowers with a card. Sonny eyed him. 

"So you're the hot doctor." He said. "Evelyn's words to my wife, not mine." He clarified to Ginny who rolled her eyes. 

"Don't know how Evelyn can tell below all that scruff." She said, wincing as she went through the motions her therapist showed her. Within seconds, Dr. Lawson, Sonny and Al were around her. 

"Ms. Baker, scale of one to ten, how bad is the pain?" Dr. Lawson asked. 

"You okay, Baker?" Al asked. 

"Breath, Ginny." Sonny said. 

"Everyone needs to back the hell up." Ginny growled before exhaling and looking at Dr. Lawson. "It was barely a one." 

Dr. Lawson put down the flowers, crossing his arms and arching an eyebrow. "Are you lying to me?" 

"Never." Ginny said, jerking her head in the direction of the flowers. "You get those for me?" 

"No." He said. "I mean they're for you, but I didn't get them." He smirked. "They're from Drake. Along with this lovely card." He waved it in front of Ginny's face. "That says that you're welcome to join him on a private yacht whenever you feel like it. There was also a bottle of very expensive champagne that I had to confiscate because it's in violation of hospital policy." 

Ginny snatched the envelope. "You read it?" 

"For security reasons." Dr. Lawson said, grinning. "You can't expect us to allow any random piece of fanmail to come in without scrutiny." 

"And without sampling the expensive booze, I'm sure." Ginny smirked. 

"You can have it back when you leave here today." Dr. Lawson shrugged. "I just thought I'd give you these and tell you that I'd be enjoying your champagne in my office....I mean safekeeping." He still looked slightly worried. "You sure it was a pinch?" He put his hand on her shoulder. Ginny nodded. "Alright." He turned to her physical therapist, a young man of about 25 who was eyeing him nervously. "Make sure she isn't pushing herself too much and spend more time on that particular muscle area when you give her a massage after her session." Lawson barked. 

"Yes, Dr. Lawson." The therapist nodded quickly. Ginny glared at Dr. Lawson. 

"He knows what he's doing." She said. "Otherwise, I'm guessing you wouldn't let him anywhere near me." 

"I was just-" Dr. Lawson began, but broke off when Ginny glared at him. He sighed. "I have other patients I need to see." He muttered, pulling his hand from her shoulder. "I'll just..." He pointed to the door and walked out. Ginny turned to look at Sonny and Al. They had twin expressions of interest. 

"What?" Ginny asked. Sonny held up his hands and backed away. 

"Nothing, Ginny." He smirked. "Just seems like you were pretty quick to chew him out." He winked. 

"I don't wanna hear this." Al muttered, turning and walking towards the table of magazines. 

"What are you trying to say?" Ginny said. 

"Just that you're tense." Sonny said, wagging his eyebrows. "And you should find a way to release it." 

"Oh god." Ginny covered her face. 

"I don't wanna hear this." Al muttered. "I mean...he's not wrong. I just don't wanna hear it." 

"You're despicable." Ginny said. 

"I'm your catcher. I'm looking out for what's best for you." Sonny said. "And I'm sure if Livan were here, he'd say the same thing." 

"Stay out of my sex life, Sonny." 

"I would, but it's not like there's anything to stay out of." Sonny shot back. "Though if you wanted..." 

"I am not letting you and the rest of the team set me up." She said. It wasn't the first time the guys had suggested it and Ginny had shot them down every time. Her personal life was her business. And besides, it's not like she was interested in Dr. Lawson. Hell she wasn't even sure she liked the guy. Sure, he was funny and he seemed to genuinely have an interest in her case. And fine, physical therapy was easier when he ribbed her on her lack of knowledge of obscure baseball facts ("watch some Ken Burns, Ms. Baker"). That way his usually surly attitude seemed to evaporate around her. The way he didn't try to fawn over her like everyone else and had no problem treating her like a regular person instead of Ginny Baker TM. She felt normal around him. Ginny snapped out of her thoughts and flushed she realized that Sonny and Al were still looking at her. 

"What?" She snapped. 

"Like I said." Al sat heavily down in the chair next to her and opened an issue of Sport's Illustrated. "I don't wanna hear about it." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike was at his desk when his phone rang and he was so distracted by his interaction with Ginny that he didn't even look at the caller id before answering. "Lawson." He said. 

"Mike, just wanted to tell you that Rachel signed the papers." His lawyer's voice said on the other line. "You're officially divorced." 

Mike's mouth hung open. There was a ringing in his ears. He swallowed. 

"Mike? Say something." 

"I um...thanks for telling me, I'm being paged." He hung up. She'd signed. Of course she'd signed. It had been 3 years since they'd separated and...she wanted to marry that other guy. He put his elbows on his desk and covered his face, trying to make sense of the mess of his emotions. 

There was a knock at his door. He glanced at the clock on his wall and was shocked to see that an hour had passed. The door opened and Ginny Baker walked in, sitting in the chair in front of the desk.

"You know, some people wait for an invitation before walking into someone's office." Mike said. 

Ginny scrutinized his face. Something seemed to be bothering her, but she shook it off. "I do this all the time." She pointed out. It was true, it had become a sort of tradition for them to talk after her physical therapy.

"Yeah, well I think I complain about it every time." Mike replied. getting up to get the bottle of champagne. He could feel Ginny's eyes on his back. "Here." He said, handing her the bottle. Ginny didn't take it. 

"You're in a particularly bad mood." She said. 

"How can you tell?" Mike muttered. Ginny crossed her arms. 

"Let's just say I've recently become an expert Lawson handler." Ginny said. "Completely against my will." She added, smirking as Mike huffed. She pushed the bottle back towards him. "Save it." She said. "I can't take it now because of my meds and the excessive health regimen my asshole of a doctor has me on." 

Mike chuckled in spite of himself, pulling the bottle back. "So I'm supposed to drink it alone?" 

"Oh hell no." Ginny said. "It's still mine. Just...think of it as you reserving it for when my treatment is over..." She drummed her fingers on the desk. "I was...thinking. Maybe the two of us could open it together?"

Mike gaped at her. Ginny ducked her head. 

"This was stupid, forget I said anything. God I suck at this." She muttered, getting to her feet. Mike rushed to block the door. 

"I just got divorced. I mean..." He shook his head. "Me and my ex were separated for a while but...she just signed the papers and..." He shook his head. "It's why I was..." He bit his lip. "What I'm trying to say, Ms. Baker is...I need a bit of time to figure myself out. I've been a bit of a mess since she left me and..." He held up the bottle. "This is my terrible way of saying you're an amazing person and honestly one of the only things that make me smile sometimes...and when you're no longer my patient, I would love to open this bottle of champagne with you." 

Ginny's eyes were wide and her lips were slightly parted. Mike looked at them and fought the urge to kiss her. It wasn't time. Neither of them were ready and he didn't want to fuck it up. "Okay." She breathed. 

"Okay." he breathed, the two of them so close and not moving. Then Mike's pager went off. "I've got to-" He reached for it. 

"Yeah, Evelyn's probably here by now." Ginny mumbled, pulling away. The looked at each other, one last time. Mike moved away from the door and put the champagne bottle on his desk. Ginny opened the door, pausing in the doorway, she looked back at him. "Just to be clear..." She said. 'You're not interested in me because I can get you free Padres tickets?" 

Mike let out a booming laugh. "Of course, Ginny." 

She hummed. "Ginny." She said. "I think I could get used to that." She smiled and it almost lit up the whole room. "I'll see you soon, Mike."


	3. Of Chasers and Keepers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Obligatory Hogwarts AU (In which Mike is a 5th year, captain of the Hufflepuff team and a Keeper (Ha ha). Ginny's a second year.  
> Other house sortings and quidditch positions (If applicable).  
> Blip: Hufflepuff (Chaser) 4th year.  
> Evelyn: Gryffindor 4th year  
> Rachel: Slytherin 5th year  
> Amelia: Slytherin 3rd year  
> Elliot: Ravenclaw 1st year  
> Will: Slytherin 4th year  
> Salvamini: Hufflepuff (Beater) 4th year  
> Sonny: Hufflepuff (Chaser) 3rd year  
> Voorhies: Hufflepuff (Beater) 4th year  
> Livan: Hufflepuff (Seeker) 2nd year

Blip sat next to Mike at the Hufflepuff table. "Quidditch tryouts today." He said, grabbing a plate of waffles. Mike glared at him.

"Really." He said, his tone flat. "I had no idea. Being the captain, I'm not aware of these things."

Blip rolled his eyes. "What Luongo thought when he promoted you, I'll never know."

"Probably that he's sick of losing to Gryffindor and the snakes." Mike mumbled, stabbing his bacon with a fork. Blip arched an eyebrow.

"So they're the snakes now." He said, earning himself another glare from Mike. "You know it's not healthy to glare at them." He nodded to the Slytherin table where Rachel was giggling with Dave.

"Just imagining what his face would look like if I hexed him." He muttered.

"Maybe you should focus on building a new team?" Blip suggested. "If we embarrass Slytherin in front of the entire school, then-"

"Maybe Rachel will dump that loser?" Mike said hopefully.

"Actually I was thinking maybe professor Luongo might give us less homework." Blip rolled his eyes. "There's more to life than girls, Lawson."

Mike was shaking his head when he caught sight of someone walking into the great hall and smirked. "Bet you change your tune in 3....2..."

Blip frowned. "What are you talking about- EV." He stood and knocked his plate over, having caught sight of Evelyn Walker going over to the Gryffindor table. "Hi, Ev." He waved. Mike smirked as Evelyn gave Blip a smile.

"How are you boys today?" she asked, "getting ready to assemble a losing team?"

"Watch it." Mike grumbled earning himself an elbow in the ribs from Blip. "I mean, definitely. We don't want to beat your team." He glared at his friend. 

"You only need 2 new players, right?" Evelyn asked. "Seeker and Chaser?" 

Blip nodded, looking at her completely smitten. Mike rolled his eyes. "Enough flirting with the enemy." he said, standing up and grabbing Blip by the collar. "You and me have tryouts." Mike walked down the side of the table, smacking the other members of the team on their backs as he walked out of the great hall. Sonny, Salvamini, and Voorhies shuffled out. 

 

 

 

 

 

"Alright badgerlings." Mike shouted, pacing in front of the students. "I am sick and tired of losing to the other houses. They think that Hufflepuff is a joke. They think we're cute and cuddly. That's the furthest thing from the truth. Badgers are vicious with sharp teeth. And they eat snakes." 

There was a small titter of laughter from the other members of the team before Mike glared at them. Turning to face the others.

"We need a chaser and a seeker." Mike said, scrutinizing the students. One of them, a cocky second year with gel hair was smirking. Mike tried to remember his name. Levine? Whatever it was, he silently hoped he wasn't that good. "So let's see what you've got." 

10 minutes later Mike was dodging a bludger that one of the chaser hopefuls had released after missing the hoop and throwing the quaffle at the box housing the balls. 

"Sal, Blip." He said, waiting until the beaters went after the bludgers before glaring at the third year who'd thrown the quaffle. "You, hang up your broom." 

"Hey Lawson." Livan Duarte was smirking on his broom. He waved, holding the snitch in one hand. Mike grit his teeth. He'd let the snitch out and told all those who wanted to be seeker to catch it. The person who caught it the most times when Mike ended try outs, got the position. 

"Okay, Duarte." He said. "Let it go and wait a minute before trying to find it." He turned back to the chaser try outs and sighed. The truth was he'd figured out from the second they'd kicked off that none of them had it. A chaser had to be able to fly with ease. They needed sharp eyes, quick reflexes and fast thinking. None of these guys fit the bill. 

"Excuse me." A voice shouted from the ground. Mike turned and looked towards the person who had spoken. There was a Slytherin girl standing in the center of the quidditch pitch. "I've got your new chaser." 

Mike landed and shook his head. "I think you have the wrong try outs." 

"No." The blonde tossed her hair and grinned. "I think I'm exactly where I need to be." She motioned behind her where a Ravenclaw boy was walking towards them and behind him was a Hufflepuff girl, a second year...Mike struggled to find her name, Gabby? 

"Ginny!" Blip landed next Mike and grinned at the girl. She looked at him, a nervous smile. "Get your big old bubble butt over here." Blip said, opening his arms. Ginny grinned and Mike was momentarily stunned by the most radiant set of dimples he'd ever seen. She jumped up and hugged Blip. 

Mike looked over Ginny, assessing her before turning back to the Slytherin girl. "Look-" 

"Amelia." She said, holding out her hand. "Amelia Slater and I'm Ginny's manager." 

"Manager?" Mike said slowly. "I'm sorry, I want to look a gift viper in the mouth, but how do I know she can throw?" 

Amelia smirked. "Because I've seen her do it. Last  year she was sneaking out and practicing so she could make the team. Which is why I am her manager. This girl's going places." 

"With what broom?" Mike asked. 

"Her brother's. He's a Slytherin as well. I heard him complaining about Ginny's skills in the common room after she borrowed his broom without asking." 

"Her brother is...?" Mike asked. 

"Will Baker." Amelia said. Mike didn't recognize the name, he looked at Ginny skeptically before turning to the Ravenclaw.

"And you are...?" 

"Eliot." He said. "I'm her data analyst." He started rattling off Ginny's stats. "Hey, did you know that Seekers aren't actually the most important player of the game? If a team has good chasers, even with 150 extra points, the other team won't win. There's actually been 53 instances of it happening during world cup games, 36 of them during final games. There was this particular time in 1903-" Mike rubbed his forehead and groaned. 

"Fine, fine, just..." He looked over at Ginny. "Get in the air and we'll see what you've got." He kicked off, shaking his head. Blip flew up after him. "Can this girl throw?" 

"Yup." Blip said, smiling. "She went to the same muggle school that I went to and she was on the baseball team." 

"Baseball?" Mike asked. 

"Muggle sport." Blip said, watching as Ginny kicked off. "She's exactly what this team needs." 

Mike grunted. "Alright." he shouted, looking at the line of potential chasers. "There are 6 of you. I'm assigning each of you a number, then I want you to get into a circle and toss the quaffle to each other based on the number I call out. Anyone who drops or fails to catch the quaffle is automatically disqualified." 

He had them count off then watched as they arranged them selves into a circle. If he could eliminate at least 3 people with this exercise, he'd be happy. "5" he shouted and threw the quaffle at Tommy Miller. Miller caught it. "3....4...2...5..." He leaned back on his broom. "1" The quaffle flew to Ginny, but Tommy had thrown it off, making it difficult to catch. Ginny lurched and almost rolled off her broom before grabbing the ball. Holding the quaffle she righted herself and glared at Miller. Mike's eyes narrowed, he didn't approve of someone deliberately sabotaging a rival. 

"Miller, a throw like that could cause us to lose possession of the quaffle in a game." He looked over at Ginny and gave her a small nod. "Good catch, Baker." He leaned back and cross his arms. "6" Ginny threw the quaffle and the person who tried to catch it, fumbled and dropped it. Ginny dove and caught the quaffle before it hit the ground. Flying up to meet the others, she looked over at Mike. He gave her a nod. She had good instincts and there was no doubt she could fly. He glared at number 6 before pointing to the ground. 

"Lawson." Duarte shouted. Mike looked over his shoulder and tried not to growl. He'd caught the snitch again. 

"Let it go, count to a hundred and then start looking for it again." He turned his attention back to the chaser try outs. After the end of 3 minutes, 3 more had been eliminated, leaving only Baker and Miller. Mike already knew who he'd prefer to be on the team, but Ginny needed to prove herself. "Alright." Mike said. "Fly down to the over goal posts then fly towards me, passing the ball back and forth."

Neither of them dropped the ball, but Mike noticed how much faster Ginny's reflexes were. He also didn't fail to notice that Tommy deliberately gave her difficult throws. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ginny hadn't said anything to Lawson since she'd entered the Quidditch pitch. She didn't want to socialize, she just wanted to play. She knew she was better than the others who were trying out. And Miller. He made her want to reconsider becoming a beater.  When they made it to the other side of the field, Lawson gave them a grunt and waving over the other two chasers. "Okay." Mike said. "This time it's going to be a bit more difficult. Sonny, you're with Baker. Voorhies, you're with Miller. You need to work together to get the quaffle to the  goal and try to score." 

Ginny looked over at Sonny. He was tall and seemed more built to be a beater than a chaser, but she'd seen him play. He was fast and he could throw pretty well. It also helped that he had a strategy of flying straight at the opposing team, scaring them into dropping the ball. He gave her a smile. "You ready, Baker?" 

She nodded. 

"Lawson." Livan called out from the opposite side of the field, holding up the snitch. Ginny tried to fight back a laugh; he was such a show off. Livan winked at her. "Looking good, Mami." 

"You're supposed to be looking for the snitch, not checking out other potential teammates." Lawson snapped. Livan shrugged and let go of the snitch. 

Flying next to Sonny she swallowed, trying to fight the nerves. Blip was waiting on the other side of the field. "Ready?" He asked, giving her a smile of encouragement. She nodded. He tossed the quaffle up into the air. Ginny flew up and grabbed the ball, throwing it towards Sonny. He caught it and flew towards Lawson, dodging a bludger. He dropped the quaffle in surprise, Ginny dove for it, about to reach it, when MIller slammed into her and knocked her off course. Her broom spun out of control and she almost hit a goal post before turning to glare at Miller who smirked at her before flying towards the goal post. Ginny hissed out an angry breath; he wasn't going to get away with that. Speeding after him, she dodged a bludger and punched the quaffle out of Miller' arms. It flew through the air. Ginny caught it and headed straight to the goal posts. swerving past Salvamini, She held up the quaffle. Lawson was in the center of the goals. She pretended to aim for the right goal. Mike moved over slightly, going towards the right ring, Ginny threw the quaffle. It was a special technique that her father had taught her. With the right spin on a quaffle, it would fly straight, then abruptly change angles. Mike saw it going towards the right hoop and dove, only to brake as it spun off into the middle goal post. Mike wheeled around, gaping as it went through. His mouth hung open. The entire field was silent.

Ginny looked around nervously, The other members of the team and the other tryouts were gaping at her with shock, except for Blip and Livan. Blip was grinning and Livan was impressed. From the stands, Amelia and Eliot were clapping. 

"She used magic." Miller shouted. "She cheated." He flew towards her, red in the face. "She definitely has her wand."

"I do not." Ginny glared at him before looking at Mike. "It isn't magic, it's practice."

"There was no way you could have made that shot." Miller sneered. 

"It's called physics." Ginny shot back. "My dad taught me how to incorporate muggle science into quidditch tactics." 

"That's even worse." 

Ginny resisted the urge to punch him in the face. 

"Do it again." Lawson's rumbling voice cut off her retort. Ginny looked at him; he seemed, skeptical, but there was something else in his eyes. He flew towards her and handed her the quaffle. Ginny took it and flew up. Throwing the ball again, it spun towards the goal post, then veered off and went into the central hoop. A glowing smile broke over Mike's face. Turning to Ginny he said, "Welcome to the team, Baker." 

 "Hey Lawson." Livan shouted from the other side of the field, holding up the snitch. Mike glared at him. 

"And you too, Duarte." He muttered. 


	4. You usually mace guys when you meet them?

Mike had passed out grading papers for his history class. He was woken by the sound of some one fiddling with the door. He fell off the couch, scattering his notes every where. Muttering out a muffled curse, he frowned at the door. Blip wasn't going to be back for days; he was on a ski trip with Evelyn. Turning off the light, he stood, walking towards the door of the apartment. He waited until the door opened. A woman he didn't know walked in and put a bag of stuff on the ground. Robbery tools? Mike grabbed her and shoved her against the wall. "Who are you?" 

She let out a shriek and elbowed him straight in the gut, causing him to cough and let her go. Pulling something from her pocket, he was hit in the face with a burning sensation. "Holy SHIT." He screamed dropping to the ground, clutching his face. 

"That's what you get you creep." The girl said. 

"Creep?" Mike gasped out. "I fucking live here, you're the one who broke into my apartment." He couldn't see anything and his entire face burned.

"Wait, are you Mike?" 

The pain was getting worse so all Mike could do was whimper and nod. 

"Shit, I'm so sorry." She said, kneeling next to him. "I'm Ginny." She said it as though it explained her presence in his apartment. "Did Blip not tell you I was coming?" 

He coughed and shook his head. 

"Typical." Ginny muttered. "Well, he gave me a key and told me I could stay for the week while I go apartment shopping. I thought he'd warned you." 

"Must have been to busy with Ev." Mike muttered. Ginny snorted. 

"No surprise there. Those two can't keep their hands to themselves."

"Try living with them." Mike groaned. "What was that? Poison?" 

"Mace." She stood and Mike heard running water. A few seconds later a cool cloth was pressed to his eyelids. It didn't do much, but it helped. Mike pressed it to his face and let out a small groan. 

"You usually mace guys when you meet them?" He asked. 

"Only if they grab me from behind in the dark." She retorted. He chuckled. 

"Fair enough."  He tried to stand, but was still wobbly. Ginny helped him over to the couch. "So," He said as he collapsed onto the couch. "How do you know Blip?" 

"He and I were on the same little league team." 

"I didn't know Blip played softball." Mike frowned. 

"And I didn't know I would need the mace again so soon." Ginny shot back. Mike chuckled. 

"He's mentioned you." He said. "So what brings you to San Diego?" 

"I'm going to start school next semester." She said. "And since I'm starting in the spring, I can't get a dorm. So I came early to look for an apartment." 

Mike nodded. "Well it's the time apartments go on the market." He leaned against the couch. Ginny looked at the scattered papers. 

"You a professor?" 

"TA" He said. "I'm a grad student, which means the professor gave me all the grunt work of grading the papers from his 200 student lecture class." 

"Sorry." Ginny said, running her hand on his back in soothing circles. Mike leaned against the contact, happy to have something to distract him from his burning face. 

"For the mace?" He asked. 

"No, you deserved that." Ginny said, laughing. It was a full laugh, one that was uncaring about being judged. Mike smiled, in spite of the pain. "I meant about the work overload." She clarified. 

"You're mean." Mike muttered, giving her a smile to show he wasn't serious, but it came out as more of a grimace because of the mace. She moved her hand off his back, pressing her cool fingers to his cheek.

"I'm sorry." She murmured. Mike shut his eyes, her skin was soft but there were some callouses on the tips of her fingers. He drew in a shaky breath, pressing against her fingers. Ginny swallowed, pulling away her hand and moving back. 

"So, what are you planning on studying?" He asked, trying to regain control of the situation and unsure why he'd felt he'd lost it. Ginny smiled. 

"Well, they want me to play baseball, but...I'm not sure what my major's going to be yet." 

"If I might offer a suggestion." He said, motioning to the stack of papers. "Avoid Frantz's history class." 

"Why, don't think I'll be up for the challenge?" Ginny asked. 

"No, I'm looking out for you." He said, picking up the stack of papers. "I don't want you to be an accessory to murder when I kill him." 

"Wouldn't you telling me this right now technically make me an accessory?" Ginny asked. Mike opened his mouth, then shut it. 

"Um..." He said. "We'll call it an excited utterance due to distress brought on by physical pain." 

"You must watch a lot of Law and Order." Ginny commented. Mike tapped his pen against the stack of papers. 

"I plead the fifth." He said. Leaning back, he looked at the ceiling, his vision still blurry. "I can't see." he groaned, how the hell was he supposed to grade the papers now? 

Ginny reached for the stack. "How about I read them out to you and you tell me what to fix?" 

Mike nodded, "There's Chinese takeout in the fridge." He said. "And beer. We're going to need lots of it." 

"Why?" Ginny asked. 

"Well me to numb the pain from my face, you to keep your sanity when you read those papers." 

"They can't be that bad." Ginny said. 

Mike snorted. "Read the first sentence of the paper at the top of the stack."  

Ginny frowned. "There was no history before Christopher Columbus landed in Mexico." She read. "...that is just so many levels of wrong." 

"The best part?" Mike said. "Is that the class is on the industrial revolution." He laughed as Ginny got up and went to the fridge, pulling out the beer. "Told ya." He said, smirking. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When Blip and Evelyn came back from their ski trip three weeks later, they walked in on Mike and Ginny making out on the couch. 

"Oh my god." Blip said, walking out. Evelyn grinned. 

"Whaaaaaaat." She said as Mike and Ginny scrambled apart. 

"Oh please." Mike grumbled. "With the amount of times I've seen Blip's bare ass." 

Blip glared at him. "Meet me outside." He growled. 

Evelyn waited until the two of them were out before grabbing Ginny. "So..." She asked. "How did that apartment hunting go?" 


	5. To Serve At the Pleasure of the President

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> West wing AU
> 
> WARNING: Major character death.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been watching episodes of the West Wing all day and I needed this.  
> I hope everyone's doing okay today. It was a difficult day.

"Madame Vice President."

Ginny stopped, her hand on her office door and turned to look at the White House Chief of Staff walking towards her. "Mr. Lawson." She said, smiling. "What can I do for you?"

Mike shoved his hands in his pockets and glanced around before motioning to the door of her office. "I need to talk to you."

Ginny turned the doorknob and walked in. "What can I do for you, Mr. Lawson?" She said, ushering him in and walking to her desk. "Leave the door open." She said as Mike reached to close the door. He froze and looked over his shoulder at her.

"Ginny." He whispered.

"Madame Vice President." She corrected as she sat behind her desk, he flinched and she felt a small surge of satisfaction; he didn't get to call her Ginny anymore. 

"Do you not trust me anymore?" He asked. It was meant to be a joke, but his smirk fell as he took in the angry look in her eyes. 

"Of course I trust you, Mr. Lawson." She said, coolly. "But you serve at the pleasure of the President and you've made that very clear." She crossed her arms.

"What happened last night-" Mike said.

"I know what happened last night." Ginny didn't want to hear any of Mike's excuses. "You told me you only value me as a political prop to consolidate your influence and hold on to the Oval for another 8 years." Ginny opened her drawer and pulled out a stack of paper and a pen.

"That's not what happened." Mike growled.

"Right." Ginny looked up and gave him a sarcastic smile. "I conveniently left out the part where you emotionally manipulated me for almost 6 years into believing you cared about me before telling me that, by the way, my only use to you is as a power play."

"That's not true." Mike stepped forward, bumping against the side of the desk, his eyes flashing. 

"Isn't it?" Ginny stood up and glared at him.

There was a knock at the door and Eliot stuck his head into the office.

"Do you want me to close the door?" He asked.

"No." Ginny said as Mike said "Yes." Ginny glared at him.

"Mr. Lawson was just leaving."

"Not until you listen to what I have to say." He said.

"Might I remind you, that I outrank you." She growled.

"Ginny," Her name was spoken softly and the plead was obvious. "Please."

She braced her hands on her desk and looked over at Eliot. "Shut the door." She said, ignoring the look of gratitude on Mike's face. "You have 1 minute, then I have to smile and host a luncheon for 34 UN representatives." 

"What I said last night." He said. "I don't see you as a politic prop. What I was trying to explain was..." He shut his eyes. "When I look at you, I don't..." He sighed. "How can I explain this." He mumbled, rubbing his eyes. Ginny scoffed. 

"You're one of the most brilliant political minds I know. I've seen you argue constitutional minutia with Supreme Court justices and win. Now you're telling me you don't know how to say, 'Ginny I'm sorry'?" 

"Gin-" 

"Madame Vice President." Ginny corrected. "I thought you were different. I thought that, out of everyone in this damn white house, I could trust you, but it turns out you're just like everyone else." She shook her head. "I know I was chosen for the job because I'm a young female black senator and the party needed to look diverse. I know nobody around here took me seriously for the first year. I know that outside these walls people are speculating that I'm the president's mistress because he's a widower and I'm a single woman. Which is disgusting, Al's basically my father. I know there are white supremacists calling for my head and evangelicals who are sure I'm a lesbian because I don't have a husband or kids. But you..." She glared at him. "I never thought I'd find reason not to trust you, Mike." She hung her head. 

"You can trust me." Mike said. "When I look at you, I see the most intelligent, capable politician I've ever known. I was going to quit, after the campaign: find myself a nice cushy job teaching constitutional law at a university and leave politics far behind. Then you walked into the campaign headquarters. Ginny Baker, Junior senator of North Carolina and the most dynamic person I've ever met. Al Luongo's a good president and will probably have a couple middle schools named after him, but you...you could be on Mount Rushmore. You reminded me the reason we do this job. Not for power or influence, but to help others. You gave me hope for the future. And I think you could change the world, which is why I told you I wanted to run your election campaign. Because I believe in you, Ginny Baker and I..." He stopped. 

There was a knock on the door and Eliot stuck his head in. 

"Mr. Lawson, the President's waiting for you." 

Mike turned and glared at him. 

"Go." She said, Mike turned to her, hurt in his eyes. 

"But-" 

She held up a hand, cutting him off. His mouth hung open as he waited for her to speak. 

"I don't want to hear it." She got up and smoothed her dress, crossing her arms. "I have a luncheon with the UN people and..." She tried to control her expression. "I need to be the good VP." She turned and looked outside her window. "I can't do that if I'm focusing on other things. I'll decide if we're going to continue this discussion when its over." Behind her, Mike let out a shaking breath before turning and walking out. The closing of the door made her jump. Pressing her hand to her mouth she fought to keep herself from screaming in frustration. She and Mike had been playing this dangerous game for a while now. It was bad. It could cause both of them to lose their jobs and any hope of being more than a chapter in a book on America's Scandals.

She forced herself to smile, prepping to deal with 34 international diplomat sized egos. She had to focus on her job, not Mike Lawson and his drama. 

 

 

 

 

 

About 2 torturous hours into the luncheon, she got called out of it to take a call from the president. 

"Al, you are a life saver." She said, taking the call and leaning against the wall. Glaring at a portrait of Thomas Jefferson, she sighed. "I was about to commit an international incident and murder a diplomat." 

"Well Mike seems upset, you kids okay?" Al asked. Ginny rolled her eyes. She could practically hear Mike's indignant growl. She knew Al well enough to know he probably had his chief of staff next to him while he was talking about him. 

"Mike's always upset." Ginny retorted. 

"Well right now he's Ginny upset." Al said. "So I'm having the kitchen make gnocchi and the three of us are going to sit down and figure out what he did to upset you." 

"And here I thought Mike was the one who was upset." Ginny laughed. 

"He's upset because he disappointed you." Al said. "Don't contradict me, I know these things. So get ready to meet me in the residence." 

Ginny shook her head. "Don't you have a country to run, Mr. President?" 

"So they tell me." Al said. "But sometimes we need things and people in our lives that go beyond the job. Trust me, Ms. Vice President." 

Ginny bit her lip, fighting back a grin. "Okay." 

"We're about to get into the car." Al said. "I'll see you when I get back." He hung up. Ginny handed the phone back to the nearest secret service agent and took a bracing breath before going back to the luncheon. 

She'd just sat back down when Secret Service agents swarmed the luncheon. "Madam Vice President." The lead agent on her security team, Salvamini, said. "We need you to come with us." 

"Why?" She asked, frowning. 

"Ma'am." Salvamini said, "I can't give you more information at this time, but we need you to go to the bunker." 

Ginny numbly got up from the table. "Is something wrong?" She asked as she was rushed through the halls. The bunker protocol was only in case of the worst possible emergency; a terrorist attack or an invasion or an attempt on the president's life. She'd never imagined they'd need the bunker. "What happened?" She demanded, her heart pounding in her chest. Sal's face was impassive.

"We need to get you to safety." Was his only response as he opened the door to the bunker. Ginny walked in and shivered as the metal door closed behind them. Pacing, she tried to fight off images of Al and Mike, hurt or worse. They'd be okay. They had to be okay. She'd argued with Mike and she couldn't believe that the last thing she'd ever say to him was that he was untrustworthy. What if he...? 

The door opened and the chief of White House Security, Sonny Evers came in. 

"Madam Vice President." He said. "The president's been shot." 

Ginny swayed and sat down in the chair. "No." She whispered. 

"He's in the hospital." Sonny continued. "As of right now there's no news, but he and the chief of staff are receiving the best care-" 

Ginny's head snapped up. "Mike's hurt?" She gasped. Sonny's expression never faltered as he answered. 

"We don't have any more information than that both he and the president were hit. I'll keep you informed as we know more." 

"Sonny..." Ginny said. Sonny's eyes dipped to the ground. 

"I really don't know." He said. "I wish I could tell you more." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike barreled into the White House, brushing off staff and the press corps. 

"Mike." Amelia stopped him. "The reporters are going to eat me alive, what do I tell them?" She stopped, looking at his arm. "Are you bleeding?" 

"The bullet grazed me." Mike said dismissively. "Where's Ginny?" 

"I need-" 

"Where is she?" He snarled. Amelia crossed her arms. 

"I'm the White House Chief of Communications and if there's news on the President I need to know." 

Mike's determination to find Ginny broke as the weight of what he had to tell her rushed through him. He slumped, feeling the stinging pain in his shoulder. Amelia's eyes widened as he shook his head. 

"I need to find Ginny." He said softly. "She's...I need to tell her and better she finds out from me than..." 

Amelia waved him on. Mike ran to the secure bunker. Outside the door, Sal and Sonny were whispering in hushed tones. Looking up at his approach, Sonny let out a sigh of relief. 

"Thank god, she's been..." He stopped as he looked at Mike. "Where's the president?" 

"Open the door." Mike said. 

"Mr. Lawson." Sal said. "I need clearance before-" 

"I'm the white house chief of staff, Salvamini. If I had wanted to dismantle the American government, I'd have done it 5 years ago after the first election, now open the door. I need to talk to the President of the United States." 

Sal and Sonny looked at him. Mike realized that, with his slip, he'd revealed more than he intended to.

"I need to talk to her." He said. Sonny nodded, punching the code, they stood aside. Mike had barely made it 2 steps into the room when he was almost knocked over when 136 lbs of Ginny Baker jumped on him. The door closed behind him. 

"I'm sorry." Ginny whispered, clutching him. "I'm sorry I yelled at you, I'm sorry I-" 

"Ginny." Mike said, his hands rubbing her back trying to comfort her as his brain screamed that he she was the leader of the free world and that it wasn't appropriate for him to be holding her like this or any other way for that matter.

"You're hurt." She backed away, looking at his arm. Her eyes were wide and fuck, all Mike wanted was to hold her and lose the pain of what had happened. He wanted to pretend for a moment, that they were normal people who were allowed normal things, like mourning together in a crisis. "Did I make it worse, and where's Al? Is he in the Situation Room, do I need to be there too or-" Ginny was rambling. 

"Madam President." He said softly, cutting her off. She froze and Mike saw the familiar mask fall back into place as she closed herself off, preparing for the inevitable. This was Ginny Baker, politician, Stateswoman. 

"What?" She whispered. 

"Madam President." He repeated. "At 3:45 pm Eastern Standard Time, the President of -" 

"Don't give me a speech, Mike." Ginny's voice was hushed. "Tell me what happened." 

Mike swallowed, the tears he'd been fighting since he'd heard the first of the 3 shots and felt the burn on his arm as it flew across his skin threatening to fall from his eyes. 

"We didn't see it coming." He said. "I was annoyed with him, Gin. He kept goading me into..." He sighed. "He wanted to talk to us because he wanted us to be together and..." He hung his head. "I stopped just before the car and told him he must be crazy when..." He swallowed. "The first shot rang out." He could see Al's slight look of confusion as he froze, one leg in the limo before the second shot hit him in the chest, sending him backwards into the car. "He wasn't moving, he just..." Mike felt Ginny's arms circle him again. "He's gone, Ginny." He clung to that moment, unsure of how much longer they'd be allowed this. How much longer they had to themselves before Ginny was forced to take the oath. 

2 minutes and 43 seconds. She was taken from the room and led out to be briefed, handed a speech by Evelyn Sanders and changed into dark clothes before put through make up and a sound check. Mike turned to Evelyn. 

"Some days I wonder who's the Chief of Staff and who's the assistant Chief of Staff." He mumbled. Evelyn gave him a small smile. "If you have to wonder, you have't been paying attention." She whispered. "I brought the Chief Justice and had the writers give Amelia a statement. She's reading it to them now. Ginny's going to be sworn in and then she's going to give that speech. After that, we've all got a meeting with local law enforcement and the major intelligence heads to try and see who did this." 

"And then I'm guessing it'll be time for breakfast and the morning briefing." Mike said. Evelyn nodded. She wrung her hands, looking at him. 

"How's the arm?" She whispered. Mike shrugged. 

"I'll live." Too late he realized his mistake. "I mean..." Evelyn shook her head. 

"She'll need you." She whispered. "Now more than ever." 

Mike watched as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court held out a Bible to Ginny. "We need someone to hold it for her." He said. Before Mike knew what he was doing he was across the room, taking the book from the Chief Justice's hands.

"I'll need a different suit jacket." He said. 

"Mike, it's bad optics for you to be here right now." Amelia said. "You've been shot and you were with the president when-" She stopped as Ginny looked back at her.  

Mike looked at Ginny. "Do you want me here?" He asked. For a second he was worried that she'd say no, but she met his eyes and nodded. Mike took the suit jacket Sonny offered him and held the Bible flat so Ginny could place her hand on it. He'd imagined this moment before: Ginny taking the oath of office, but every time it had been on the Capitol with Al and him looking on in pride. Not with him covered in blood and her fresh from who knows how long in the bunker and...and Al dead. He swallowed his pain, focusing on the woman in front of him. He'd never met anyone who deserved the office of president more, but he'd never wanted it for her like this.

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was 5:30 am by the time Ginny got a break. She sat at a table in the white house kitchen, a plate of cold gnocchi in front of her. Mike walked in and sat opposite her. She didn't move, all she could do was stare at the plate. 

"I can't feel." She said, breaking the silence. "I should be angry or sad or something, anything, but I just feel...empty." 

Mike nodded. "Right now, it's like I'm feeling everything." He said, pushing a spoon towards her. "You need to eat, Ginny." He murmured. "Eat, then try to sleep for a bit." 

"I don't know if I can." She said. "I think I'll drink a cup of coffee and-" 

"Ginny." 

"I can't eat this." Ginny snapped, glaring at him. "I can't sit and have this without Al, we were supposed to be sitting here with him, going over current events and laughing at what the opposition media created to discredit him. We're..." She slammed her hand on the table. "What the hell am I going to do?" 

Mike swallowed, "Madam President." 

"Don't call me that." Ginny glared at the table. 

"It's what you are." He said. "I know you've been put into an impossible situation. I know you're terrified and angry. I know you feel like your life has been stolen from you right now and that all hope for a life of your own is gone, but you are the best person for this job." He hesitated. "Al knew that and even though you're freaking out right now, I know you know that." 

Ginny looked at her hands. "The first day I walked into the Senate, I...I was scared. There I was, younger than some of my colleague's grandchildren and a black woman." She shook her head. "Many of them were pissed, they called me the Millennial senator." She looked at Mike. "Al took me under his wing. He had weekly meetings with me, taught me all the secrets of dealing with the old boy's club. He made sure we had dinner at least once a week." She smiled. "When I called him out on treating me differently, he said 'Baker, no one's ever going to forget who you are, but I sure as hell won't let them use it against you.'" She laughed. "Then he made some less than PC remark about how much prettier I was then most of the schmucks who walked through the Capitol, and smarter too." She swallowed the lump in her throat. Mike gave her a watery smile. "He was like a father to me. In many ways better than my actual dad and...I can't even mourn him." She shook and it was as though something within her snapped. Tears began streaming down her face. "I couldn't mourn my dad because it happened in the middle of my campaign and now I can't mourn Al because I have to run an entire country." 

Mike was moving around the table in seconds and she gratefully slumped in his arms. He didn't say anything, just held her. 

"About what I said earlier." Ginny said. 

"I should have found a better way to explain myself." Mike murmured. 

"I trust you." She looked up at him, wiping her eyes. "More than you could ever know." 

Mike smiled down at her. "Damn right you do." 

She let out a loud noise that was a mix between a laugh and a sob. "I don't want to go upstairs." She said. "They want me to move into the residence and...that's Al's place." 

"It's yours now." 

"I didn't earn it." 

"Well then in 3 years you'll run and you'll win." Mike said. Ginny leaned back and laughed. 

"How are you so confident?" She asked. Mike ran his hand over her hair. "Because I've learned better than to bet against Ginny Baker." He swallowed. "That line is going to be great when Ryan Gosling delivers it playing me in the movie of your life." 

"Ryan Gosling?" Ginny asked. 

"Or one of the Hemsworths. I'm not picky." Mike said. Ginny pulled away. 

"With that beard, I'm thinking more Jeff Bridges." She said, looking back at the gnocchi. "I don't think I can eat that." 

Mike let go and pulled off the jacket he was wearing, putting it over her shoulders. "I don't blame you." He said, walking over to the nearest fridge. "How do hamburgers sound?" 

Ginny smiled. "Amazing." 

"Good." Mike said, pulling ingredients out of the fridge. "Also I quit." 

Ginny's eyes bugged out of her head. 

"What?" She said. 

"I quit." 

She dropped the jacket and glared at him. How could he do this to her? She needed him. She couldn't do this alone. "You can't quit." 

"The reason the White House ran smoothly today is because of Evelyn Sanders. I can't do my job, Ginny." he looked at her with serious expression. "And frankly I don't want to." 

"So you're leaving me here, alone." Ginny hissed. 

"Never." Mike smiled. "I can't do my job as Chief of Staff, but there is another job I have my eye on." He pulled out slices of cheese and a bottle of ketchup. "First Lady." 

Ginny's jaw dropped. "Mike."

"Well, First Gentleman, but you catch my drift." Mike said. He seemed nervous. "I love you, Ginny Baker. I lost one of the most important people in my life and the only person I want to talk about it with is you. I want to see you win, succeed and lead this country and if I'm your chief of staff, I won't be able to be objective. And god help me if they start making you date for political reasons, because I will probably be sitting in the east room with a baseball bat ready to give any man who so much as blinks at you the riot act." He leaned forward. "Ginny, I love you. It's the worst moment, but we both know I have shitty timing and I can't stand to see you in pain." He looked at the ground beef in front of him. "So I'm quitting, so I can be there for you. As long as...you know, you want me to." 

Ginny's jaw had hit the floor somewhere in the middle of the speech. A silence engulf the room. She reached down and picked up the jacket, putting it back around her shoulders. 

"How do you want your burger?" He murmured, turning away from her. 

"Medium rare." She answered. "With-" 

"Jalepeno pepper slices and extra cheese." Mike finished, giving her a small smile. "I know." 

Ginny listened as he fired up the stove and began hunting through the cabinet for the stove top grill. She'd almost lost him. Even now as she watched him, she could see him wincing in pain as he moved his arm. It was barely a graze and though it would leave a scar, it wouldn't bother him in a few days, but Ginny realized how close he'd come to being gone. Al's absence weighing on both of them, she knew she couldn't live the rest of her life sacrificing something that made her happy. If Mike wanted this, so did she.

"I guess it helps that you'd be the first person to have the title of First Gentleman." She said. Mike froze, not moving, waiting to hear her next words. "I mean, what better to boost the Mike Lawson ego than going down in a history book as the first something? I bet you'll get a whole paragraph." 

"First and most handsome." Mike corrected. "And this face demands a page." Ginny laughed. 

"Helps that you're the only." She said, "Cuz otherwise the beard would make you lose serious points." 

"Well that's rich coming from the second most attractive president." 

"Second?" Ginny asked. 

"Uh huh." He said. "Right after Teddy Roosevelt." 

"I lost to Teddy Roosevelt?" Ginny gaped at him. "He's not even the most attractive Roosevelt." 

"That's a matter of opinion." Mike said. 

"At least FDR was a Democrat. Where's your party loyalty?" Ginny shot back. The tension was broken.

Mike looked at her, nervously. "So, does this mean you accept my resignation?" She nodded. 

"I still..." She looked at the forgotten plate of gnocchi. "I still don't know if I can go upstairs." Mike held out a hand. 

"You'll have to." He whispered. "Because if you don't do the kick ass job we all know you can do, Al's probably going to haunt you." 

Ginny gave him a grimace. "I'm scared." 

"I'd be worried if you weren't." Mike replied. 

"We don't even know why..." She trailed off. She couldn't finish the thought without voicing the sick twisting idea that she might be next. Mike reached across the table and took her hand. 

"Hey, nothing is going to happen to you." 

"I almost lost you today." She threaded her fingers through his. 

"Takes more than a bullet to get me to leave you, Madam President." He said. "Besides, I haven't had the chance to be First Gentleman yet." 

Ginny pressed her lips together. "Al would be happy to know we finally got our heads out of our asses." 

Mike nodded, opening a cabinet and grabbing a bottle from the top shelf. "This is the good stuff we save for royal visits." He said. "If any moment calls for it..." 

"Al used to stash a bottle of scotch in his senate office desk." Ginny said. "He only opened it twice. Once when he announced his campaign and the second the day I accepted his appointment to be his VP." She looked at the bottle in his hands. 

"I think he hid it in his living room in the residence." Mike said. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The next morning Evelyn Sanders found the president of the United States on a couch with her head on chest of the Chief of Staff. The two of them were fast asleep, Ginny's eyes red rimmed and makeup in tear tracks down her cheeks. Mike's shirt was covered in mascara. A bottle of ridiculously expensive scotch was on the ground next to them. Evelyn sighed. 

"GET UP." She shouted. 

Ginny sat up. "Hey, Ev..." She said, blinking as Mike groaned and tried to pull her back down to him. "Good news; you've been promoted." 


	6. Woman of Steel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Superhero AU  
> In which Ginny is Superman to Mike's Lois Lane.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fair warning, the Bawson in this is spread out. The universe kinda got away from me when I was adding details to make it more established. It took me a while to get back to Mike and Ginny, but I got there eventually.  
> I think you'll like the detour I took, though.

Ginny clutched her coffee against her and tried to concentrate on anything besides the press of the crowded elevator. Looking up at the ceiling, she adjusted her glasses and looked through the metal, watching the moving gears of the elevator. She hated this part of her morning, but people might start asking questions if she flew to the top floor of the San Diego Union Tribune.

Getting off on her floor, she glanced around before heading to her desk. Blip plopped a folder on her desk. "You're looking good this morning." He remarked. "Hot date?"

Ginny rolled her eyes; he clearly thought he was funny. "Yeah, with a whole fire house." She said, reaching for the folder.

Blip smirked, having no doubt heard about the fire downtown. "Those firemen seemed to really appreciate Superwoman's help."

"Uh huh." Ginny opened the folder and frowned. It was information on some billionaire CEO named Amelia Slater.

"So grateful in fact..." Blip pulled out his phone and showed her a picture. "That they might want to show that gratitude-"

Ginny pushed Blip's hand away and nervously adjusting her glasses and looking around. "Put that away." She hissed.

"There are pictures of Superwoman in here every day." Blip retorted. "Please tell me you got some."

"Don't be gross." Ginny said, leaning back in her chair. "I'm pretty sure using my superpowers to get a date is a breach of trust." 

"There are no rules for this kind of stuff." Blip smirked, leaning closer and whispering. "Seeing as you're the only super powered alien flying around, I'd say you make the rules." 

Ginny looked around the news room again and shook her head. "You know you're ridiculous." She tapped the folder. "What am I supposed to do with this?" 

"Interview her. Al wants a profile." Blip said. 

"Since when am I relegated to page 6?" Ginny frowned. 

"Genevieve Baker, I'm shocked at you." Blip smirked. "She's not just any billionaire, she lives in Oakland and apparently she's very reclusive, rarely grants interviews."

"Which is why it's annoying as hell that she specifically asked for you." 

Ginny looked up as Mike Lawson walked over to her desk. She stood quickly, jostling her desk and knocking over her coffee. It spilled everywhere, blotting the file on Amelia Slater. Mike smirked. 

"Having a good day, Rookie?" He asked. 

"I've been working here for 3 years, Lawson. I'm more than a rookie." She snapped. No one wound her up like Mike Lawson. He grabbed the cup of coffee, it was half empty but he began drinking it anyway. Ginny glared at him as he grimaced. 

"This is pure sugar." He said. 

"Which is how I like it." Ginny retorted. 

"Next time put like half of this in here." Mike said, moving away. 

"I didn't make it for you, Lawson." 

Mike blinked and looked at her in confusion. "That doesn't seem right." He muttered. "Good work on the Padres piece last week. It's nice to see you can spell." 

"Well it's probably not the iambic pentameter you're used to..." She smirked as Mike looked up at the ceiling in irritation. 

"I'll be back when its lunchtime." He said, "what are you having today?" 

"Chinese." Ginny muttered. 

"I think you're having pizza." Mike walked away. Blip watched him go, then  shook his head. 

"Guess the mystery of why you're still single has been resolved." he muttered. 

"And the mystery of how it's any of your business continues." Ginny sat back down and looked at the mess on her desk. At least her laptop hadn't been affected. 

"Come on, Gin." Blip said. "If you're still single, what hope is there for the rest of us?" 

"Aren't you married?" Ginny asked. "To like the best woman in all of San Diego, nay the world?" 

Blip got a far off look in his eyes. "Yeah." He said, clearing his throat. "So anyway, there's going to be a private helicopter that'll pick you up and take you to Amelia Slater's office in Oakland." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ginny walked up to the helipad, gaping at the Slater Industries helicopter waiting for her. Mike was glaring at it, his arms crossed over his chest. 

"Come to see me off, Lawson?" She asked, shouting over the roar of the helicopter. Mike snorted. 

"I came to warn you" He looked down at her. "Slater is a shark." 

"I'm pretty sure she wouldn't have gotten anywhere in the business world without knocking a few heads." Ginny looked over at Mike. "Are you worried about me, Lawson?" 

Mike looked back at the helicopter and sighed. "Just...be careful, okay?" 

"Sounds like there's history there." Ginny couldn't fight the feeling of jealously that twisted her gut. Mike rubbed his face. 

"One night and she never called me again." He muttered. 

"I think you mean you never called her again." Ginny rolled her eyes. She knew his MO; the Mike Lawson experience was legendary in San Diego. 

"No." Mike shook his head. "She literally ran out on me in the middle of foreplay." 

Ginny grimaced. "Information I really didn't need to know." 

"She had her butler put me in a car." Mike looked down at Ginny. "Plus, she's been known to destroy reporters' careers. Not mine, I'm untouchable seeing as I have a Pulitzer, but you're still-" 

"Don't say it." Ginny warned. 

"A rookie." Mike finished, smirking. Ginny looked at the sky. If she did it fast, no one would see her throw him off the roof. He was infuriating and smug and had an annoying beard and was supportive and attractive. She derailed that train of thought as soon as she felt it unraveling. Looking back at Mike, she gave him a confident smile. 

"I got this, Lawson." She said. "I may not have a Pulitzer, but that's because I haven't been around long enough to get an honorary lifetime achievement award." 

Mike didn't even flinch. He was looking at her, intently. 

"What, no come back?" Ginny asked, turning to go towards the helicopter. 

"Don't ask her about Batwoman." He said. 

"Huh?" Ginny stumbled. 

"Ginny." 

"Ginny?" She turned and looked at him, unsure where this line of conversation and the raw concern in his tone were coming from. How the hell could he have known it was exactly what she was planning to do? 

"I know you've been pushing Al to let you have that story and I've seen your weird stalker board." Mike said. "Amelia Slater doesn't like questions outside of the parameters she's set for her interviews." 

"She didn't give me any parameters." Ginny said. Mike's eyes widened slightly and she heard his heart beat increase. He was worried about her. "And it's not a stalker board." She said. "It's a simple way of organizing the information I can find about Batwoman." She turned and walked to the helicopter. Getting in, she tried to focus on anything besides the deafening whirl of the chopper blades. Mike was looking at the helicopter, concern etched on his features. Shaking his head, he gritted his teeth and muttered. 

"She thinks she's goddamn invincible." 

She heard it and looked back at Mike. He stood next to the door watching as the helicopter took off. He was there long after they'd gone out of the view of normal human eyes. Ginny leaned back and centered herself. Amelia Slater had clearly arranged for this interview to throw her off balance, but for the life of her, she couldn't figure out why. Sure, she'd done a few pieces on Superwoman that had gotten her some recognition, a couple sports stories and one particularly memorable piece on deep sea fishermen where she'd been trapped on a boat for a week, but she'd never interviewed a society person, much less a CEO. 

The helicopter flew over Oakland. Ginny frowned as she scanned the ground beneath her. "Isn't Slater Industries over there?" She pointed. The pilot nodded. 

"Ms. Slater is having you meet her at her residence." 

Ginny's eyes narrowed. Something was very off about this entire meeting. She wasn't going to say she was nervous, but being in an enclosed space with a mystery she couldn't crack made her uncomfortable. The helicopter landed outside a large manor house on the outside of Oakland. Ginny practically bust through the door in her eagerness to get out. She smiled at the pilot and walked up to the Manor. The door was a huge and made of oak. Ginny looked for a doorbell or something to knock but before she could find anything the door was opened. 

"Ms. Baker." An older British man smiled and ushered her in. "Ms. Slater will meet you in the sitting room." 

Ginny nodded, "Thank you, Mr...?" She held out her hand.

"Pennyworth, but you can call me Alfred." He glanced down at her hand and shook it. "If you'll follow me." 

Ginny gawked at the size of the entrance. She'd never met anyone who had a sitting room. Actually she wasn't sure what a sitting room was and guessed it was just a fancy way of saying living room. The room in question had a small number of books, a coffee table, a piano, some furniture. She walked over to the couch, unsure whether she should sit on a couch was probably worth more than all of the furniture in her apartment. She was just lowering herself onto the couch when -

"I wouldn't sit on that one." 

Ginny straightened up, turning to look at the woman who was standing in the entrance of the sitting room. She hadn't heard her coming. How was that even possible? Plastering a smile on her face, she held out her hand. "Ginny Baker." 

Amelia Slater ignored her hand, walking over to a drink's table. "I know." She said. "What would you like to drink?" 

Ginny glanced at the table. She didn't drink much alcohol because it didn't have any affect on her and she hated the taste of most hard liquors. "Not while I'm working." She studied Amelia Slater. She was tall, blonde with pale skin. She radiated the demeanor of someone who was not to be crossed. Ginny also noted that her immaculate pantsuit hid a surprisingly muscled frame.

"I wouldn't sit on that couch because it's terribly uncomfortable." Amelia continued, pouring herself a glass of scotch. Ginny watched as she lifted the glass to her lips. "Try that one." She pointed to the one opposite the first one. Ginny sat and crossed her legs, holding her notepad and pen on her lap and pulling out a recorder. Amelia sat in the uncomfortable chair.

"Before we begin..." She fiddled with the recorder. "I just want to say that I'm not sure why I'm here." Amelia wasn't scaring her, but she was off putting somehow. Amelia leaned forward, looking at Ginny intently. "Ms. Slater." She added, quickly. 

"This meeting is more to satisfy my curiosity." She said. "I've been monitoring your career, Ms. Baker." She smiled. Ginny swallowed. It wasn't a normal smile, sure on first glance a person would be fooled, but...it didn't quite meet her eyes. 

"Why?" She wasn't as established as many of her colleagues.

"You're a woman in a man's world." Amelia said. "I can relate to that." 

"I'm just a junior reporter." Ginny said. "That's not exactly the same level as CEO of a Fortune 500 company." Amelia's gaze on her made her wonder who in the room had X-Ray vision. Perhaps it was the CEO's well cultivated air of mystery, but Ginny couldn't shake the feeling that Amelia Slater knew more than she was letting on. 

"No, I don't think you and I are on the same level at all." Amelia said softly. 

"So why me?" Ginny asked. "I'm sure there are tons of junior female reporters in Oakland who would have been overjoyed at this exclusive." 

"True." Amelia said. "But I wanted an interview with you." She took a sip of here drink. "So, might we begin?" 

Ginny leaned back in her seat. Something was very very off. "I don't like being lied to, Ms. Slater." 

Amelia arched an eyebrow. "Oh?" 

"You served yourself a glass of scotch, but you haven't taken a sip, you've pretended to. You flew me, an outside reporter, to Oakland when you never give the local press anything more than paparazzi glamour shots. I don't write celebrity puff pieces, Ms. Slater. I make a point not to because if I did my coworkers would treat me like nothing more than a gossip reporter. You've got an agenda, I want to know what it is." 

Amelia leaned back in her chair and gave Ginny an assessing look. "Well." She said. "At least you aren't stupid." She ran her finger over the rim of her glass. "Though that spread board you have in your office says otherwise." 

Ginny's eyes narrowed. How would Amelia Slater know about her Batwoman spread board. 

"You don't approve of Oakland's vigilante, do you Ms. Baker?" Amelia continued. 

"I don't know how-" 

"In fact," Amelia pulled a newspaper out of the drawer of the table next to her. "You think she's 'dangerous and undisciplined." 

"I never said that." Ginny said. 

"You didn't have to." Amelia said. "I've read your articles, Ms. Baker." She didn't seem upset, in fact she seemed amused. "Superwoman's handling of the bank robbery left no victims and no innocent bystanders injured. The hero's dedication to working within the confines of the law were admirable, if only everyone could show the same restraint when dealing with citizens of this country." She put the article down. "Now I know that wasn't a shot a Wonder woman because of your approval of her and I'm certain you would never speak out against Superwoman because of your close relationship with her." Amelia paused and Ginny fought to keep her expression neutral. She knew. How could she know? "So who, in your mind, does that leave?" 

Ginny frowned. Why was this so important to her...unless. Her eyes widened. Amelia smirked. 

"Back to your earlier question, why do you believe I called you here." 

Ginny jumped to her feet. "You." 

Amelia smiled. "Me." She replied. 

"You're..." She looked her up and down and realized how utterly brilliant it was. No one would suspect Amelia Slater, CEO, Party Girl, Philanthropist, of being Batwoman. She was the epitome of elegance and class, no one would associate her with the grit, blood and danger of being a vigilante. "Batwoman." 

"Yes I am." Amelia replied. "Want that drink? Wait..." She smirked. "I suppose it won't have any effect on you, Superwoman." 

Ginny's eyes narrowed. "Why tell me?" She demanded. "I could..." 

"Do what?" Amelia challenged. "Tell the world I'm Batwoman? No one would believe you and it would draw undue attention to yourself." She smiled. "Attention that might make people realize just how much you look like the most famous woman in the world." She chuckled. "Then they'll take a closer look at the people in your life...which includes Mrs. Sanders." She took put down her glass. "Wonder Woman and Superwoman are best friends... how cliche." 

"What do you want?" 

"I want an alliance." Amelia replied. Ginny sank back onto the couch in shock. 

"Right about now, I kinda wish I could metabolize alcohol." She mumbled, then frowned at Amelia. "I don't work with criminals." 

"How are we different?" Amelia asked. 

"Well for one, you left the man who challenged you last week in the ICU." Ginny growled. 

"Not all of us have the luxury of Super Strength, Ms. Baker." Amelia's eyes narrowed. "Opponents tend to not hit back when faced with an invulnerable opponent. So before you and Wonder Woman...my apologies, Evelyn Sanders, judge me from your high horse, think about what you'd do were you in my position." 

Ginny ground her teeth. "If you hate us so much why work with us?" She said. Amelia leaned back in her chair. 

"I've been watching you, Ms. Baker. You were much closer to discovering the truth than you realized." Amelia drummed her fingers on the arm of the chair. "In addition, had you really wanted to know who I was, you'd have flown up here and taken a look for yourself. I couldn't have stopped you. No one could." 

Ginny looked at her hands. 

"And that's why I decided it was time we meet. See if anyone in this room doesn't have reason to trust the other it's me. You could, with a simple look, set this entire house on fire. You could bring this world to its knees...and yet you don't." Amelia said. "Now you're either playing a long game of earning people's trust, or..." 

"Or?" Ginny asked. 

"Or you're genuinely as good as you claim to be." Amelia said simply. "I had to be sure." She stood and pulled a flashdrive out of her pocket. "We'll be in touch. On this is a file with answers to questions that should be enough for a profile on Amelia Slater CEO." She smiled. "Alfred will show you out." 

Numbly Ginny took the flash drive and walked out of the sitting room. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike was waiting by her desk when she got back to San Diego. 

"Baker." He said. 

"Not in the mood, Lawson." She mumbled, sitting at her desk. Mike frowned. 

"What happened with Slater?" He demanded. Ginny looked up at him. 

"I'm not sure how its any of your business." She snapped. Mike's eyes widened. 

"What happened?" 

"It doesn't matter." Ginny wrung her hands. How was she going to tell Evelyn? What was she going to tell Evelyn? Blip would freak out, that was sure. She couldn't tell her mother, she'd never approved of her wanting to be a hero and Will...he'd always been secretly jealous of his adopted sister. She wished her father was here...though he'd probably blame her for being careless. 

"Earth to Baker." Mike said, he had genuine concern in his eyes. She opened her mouth and was about to confess everything. Of all the people around her, Mike was the one she wished she could bring close, but...he couldn't know. 

"Lawson, don't you have a model you should be charming for an exclusive one on one interview?" She said, turning on her computer. 

"Whatever it is, you can tell me." Mike reached out to touch but Ginny pulled away. 

"I have a story to write." She said, looking at the computer screen. 

"Everything alright, Ginny?" Livan asked as he made his way to the coffee machine, she nodded. 

"Lawson was just leaving." 

Mike sighed and glared at Livan until he swaggered away. Looking back at Ginny, he leaned closer and lowered his voice. "I don't know what happened, but once you realize you don't have to carry the entire world on your shoulders every day, come talk to me." He straightened up and walked away. Ginny pressed her lips together. He'd never know how wrong he was. 

 

 

 

 

"So she just wants us to what?" Evelyn frowned. "Form a superhero club? Make friendship bracelets?" 

Ginny had flown over to her place after it became clear that she wasn't going to be productive.

"How should I know?" She said. 

Evelyn sighed. "Well, you could have asked for details. Isn't that what you reporters do?" 

"How about you fly over and ask her?" Ginny snapped. Evelyn arched an eyebrow. 

"I might just do that." She said, holding out a bag of microwave popcorn. Ginny sighed and used her heatvision to heat up the kernels. 

"And when I got back I was just...so wound up, I couldn't even look at the damn file she gave me and I snapped at Mike. Al's going to expect something on his-" 

"Back up." Evelyn said, opening the bag of popcorn and putting it in a bowl before flying over to sit next to Ginny on the couch. "What happened between you and Mike?" 

"Nothing." Ginny said. "I got mad and told him to leave me alone, that's it." 

"No it's not." Evelyn grinned, poking her in the shoulder. "Come on. Spill." 

Ginny sighed. "Nothing happened, Ev...he just..." She frowned, thinking of Mike's response. "He just said that when I realized that didn't have to carry the weight of the world on my shoulders, I should come talk to him." She muttered, grabbing a handful of popcorn. Evelyn squealed. "Shut up." 

"He is so in love with you." 

"No, he's not." Ginny looked at her in disbelief. "You know, no one would believe you were an Amazon warrior if they saw you right now." 

"Because I'm so cute?" Evelyn suggested. Ginny rolled her eyes. 

"Because you're so unbelievably ridiculous." She said. 

"So when are you going to talk to him?" Evelyn said. 

"When?" Her friend's certainty was amusing. "He's at the Padres game right now, so I can't-" 

"AHA" Evelyn pointed at her. Ginny's mouth hung open and a piece of popcorn fell out. 

"Huh?" 

"You know where he is." She grinned. "Because you liiiiike him." 

"Evelyn, I-" 

"Ginny." Evelyn put her hand on her shoulder. "You need someone in your life you can be honest with." 

"I have you." 

"No." Evelyn said. "I mean, yes. But you don't have anyone in the way Blip is there for me. I mean, I could have been, but Blip got to me first." 

Ginny snorted. 

"Hey, couple of thousand years on an island with only women, what did you think I was doing?" 

"Chopping the heads off of monsters." 

Evelyn nodded thoughtfully. "That too." 

"I just..." Ginny looked at the popcorn. "I'm not sure I can trust him or that...if he finds out the truth that he'll even want me." 

"Then throw his ass into the sun and move on." Evelyn said. "He's only worth your time if you decide he is. Seriously, he's not in your league, but you like him, so Carpe bearded man." 

Ginny was about to respond when her phone went off. "Speak of the devil." She muttered, looking at the caller id. 

"Are you going to answer it?" Evelyn asked. Ginny shook her head and was about to reject the call when Evelyn grabbed the phone from her hand and pressed answer. 

"Ginny Baker's phone, Evelyn Sanders speaking." 

"There's an attack at the baseball game. Some guy in a mask showed up with a laser cannon." Mike said. Ginny's eyes widened and before he could say anything else she was flying out of Evelyn's house, pulling her suit on as she went. Petco Park was full of people screaming and fleeing as lasers blasted holes in the side of the structure. Ginny flew overhead and scanned the crowd. Some people were hurt, others were dead. The man with the canon was just firing at a group of people. At the front of the crowd, shielding a group of kids was Mike. Ginny flew down and blocked the laser, taking the hit straight in her chest. It only pushed her back slightly, barely giving her a nudge. Looking over her shoulder at Mike, she said, 

"Get these people to safety." 

Mike grinned. "Yes superwoman." 

Turning back to the man with the canon, she marched straight up to him, breaking the firing mechanism and shoving him to the ground. "Now you'll just have to wait until the authorities get here." 

The immediate area around them was almost empty. The man glared up at her. "I'm not going anywhere." He spat. I worked too hard to get this plan to work and I'm not going to let you ruin it, Super Bitch." 

"Wow." Ginny deadpanned. "Haven't heard that one before." She tapped the canon. "There's nothing you can do, this can't hurt me." 

He grinned and pressed a detonator. Ginny's eyes widened. How had she missed it. 

"It might not hurt you." He said, pointing behind her. "But what about him?" 

Mike had come back and was standing behind her. Ginny's eyes widened and she jumped, covering him with her body just as the canon exploded. Mike coughed as she pushed off of him. Looking around she grimaced as the remains of the canon and its operator were splattered everywhere. Turning back to Mike she checked him over. No broken bones or lasting damage that she could see. 

"What were you thinking?" She shouted. Mike looked sheepishly at the ground in front of him. "You could have been killed." 

"Ginny-" 

"And you..." She froze, looking at him her eyes wide. "What?" 

He rolled his eyes. "You seriously think that I don't know?" 

Before she could respond to the statement the police swarmed, thanking her for her help. She did the only thing she could think of: she fled. 

 

 

 

Later that night, after she'd cleaned up, she couldn't go to sleep. Mike knew. Probably for a long time if the way he'd so casually said it was any indication and...he'd called her. When he'd known there was danger, he'd called her. She opened the window to her apartment and flew out. She needed answers. The last 24 hours had been nothing but curveballs and anxiety. Mike lived on the far side of town in a giant glass house she called the fish tank. He didn't seem surprised to see her, in fact; he was waiting for her. 

"Took you long enough." He said, handing her a beer. She took the bottle, weighing it in her hands. 

"How long?" She asked, not looking at him. 

"Since the first time you saved my ass." Mike said. "Glasses? Really?" 

"It works better than you'd think." 

"Not on me." 

She looked up. He was staring at her intently. She swallowed. "You paying special attention to my face, Lawson?" 

"Could you blame me?" He asked. 

"If you've known...why didn't you say anything?" Ginny asked. Mike shrugged. 

"Why didn't you?" he asked. "I figured the most important woman on the planet didn't need anyone treating her any different and..." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I was kinda hoping that you'd tell me yourself." He bit his lip. "If I had known all it would take was a crazy man with a laser canon." 

"Don't even joke about that." Ginny was surprised by the ferocity of her tone. Mike nodded. 

"When I saw him, all I could think was...call Ginny. I didn't even think I just reacted." He said. 

"That's kinda the same way it was for me." Ginny murmured. "I heard you were in trouble and I just..." 

"You had to come and save me." 

Ginny rolled her eyes at his smug expression. "Maybe next time I won't." She said. Mike studied her. 

"What happened with Amelia Slater?" He asked. 

Ginny shifted, not wanting to talk about it. 

"Does she know?" Mike asked. Ginny lifted her head. Mike must have read the answer in her expression because he rubbed a hand over his chin and let out a curse. 

"How did you know she'd be interested in that?" 

Mike sighed. "I may have...been less than truthful about our night together." He mumbled. "The truth is, we didn't even get that far...and I left before anything could happen." He frowned. "She kept...asking not so subtle questions about you... as in Superwoman and...then she mentioned you as in...Ginny." He sat on one of the chairs that was poolside. "I didn't like it, so I left." 

Ginny swallowed. "I'm sorry." 

"Don't be." He said. "So what did she say?" 

"She..." Ginny sat next to him, unsure how or if she should explain. "She was interested in knowing more about Superwoman...and she figured out it was me." 

"Ah." Mike said. "And what's she going to do with that information?" 

"Honestly?" Ginny said. "I don't know." She pulled her knees up to her chest. "And it freaks me out." 

Mike reached out and put his hand on her shoulder. Ginny leaned against it, looking up at the sky. "You're really from up there?" He asked. Ginny nodded. 

"I don't remember my planet, though." She mumbled. "But sometimes it helps to just...look up there and..." She shook her head. 

"So I guess I can't ask you if it hurt." 

"Huh?" She looked at him in confusion. He was grinning. 

"When you fell from heaven." 

Ginny groaned and looked up at the sky. "Of all the pick up lines..." She rolled her eyes. 

"Don't pretend it didn't work on you, Baker." He said. 

Ginny smiled in spite of herself. "I guess it helps that I have X-ray vision so I can see through that sorry ass line...and the beard." 

Mike chuckled, running a hand over his chin. "I know I can't imagine what it must be like, to lose an entire planet, but...you have me." He pulled off her glasses. She smiled. At least one thing had gone right today. 

"I do know a bit about my planet." She continued. Mike arched an eyebrow. "The spaceship that my parent sent me in came with a present from my birth parents...There's a place in the north pole, a fortress of solitude." 

"A what?" Mike asked. 

Ginny grimaced. "My father came up with the name." She mumbled, thinking of Jor-El's kind eyes and warm brown dimples. "There's a holo projection of him in the fortress." She looked at him. "I'd like to take you sometime." 

He smiled. "I'd like to see it." He threaded his fingers through hers. He was moving closer to her, his eyes fluttering closed as he pressed his forehead to hers. She closed her eyes, feeling the warm of his skin. His nose brushed against hers. She swallowed. He was so close. This was everything she'd wanted and yet...

"Do I scare you?" She asked. Mike pulled back abruptly, dazed. 

"Huh?" 

"I'm...a bit different from anyone else you've ever dated." She mumbled. 

"What? Do you think that because you can bench press me with a pinky that it scares me?" He laughed.

"Why is that so ridiculous?" She asked. 

"Because, as amazing as I am, I have to admit that you are...lightyears beyond my awesome." He brushed his fingers across her cheek. "I can't imagine that you'd want me." 

Ginny moved forward, her lips pressing fully against his. Mike groaned and pulled her closer. Ginny straddled his lap, gripping his shirt. Her fingers tore it. Mike's eyes opened and Ginny saw a flash in their depths. 

"Ginny." he moaned. 

There was a thud next to them. Ginny jumped, ready to fight. 

"Sorry." Evelyn said, wincing as she took in the position Mike and Ginny were in and adjusting her lasso. "As overjoyed as I am that this..." she pointed to the two of them, "is finally and I mean _**f** **inally**_ happening. I need Superwoman, now. Sea monster." 

Mike blinked at her in surprise. "Ev?" He said. 

"Hey, Mike." Evelyn said. 

"You're..." He looked at Ginny. "She's..." 

Ginny pulled him to her and pressed another kiss to his lips, causing him to let out a small moan. "I'll be back after I get rid of the monster." 

Mike nodded. "Go get it, Superwoman." 


	7. Lady and the Tramp

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Veterinarian AU  
> Because what's better than Bawson? Bawson with DOGS!!!!!!

Ginny walked out into the waiting room of her clinic. "So, Eliot." she smiled. "Who's on the chopping block for today."

Eliot handed her the list. She looked at the name. "Leia Lawson?" She asked. A man in the corner of the room, holding a corgi got up. Ginny smiled, "follow me." She led them into an exam room. "So." She said, opening Leia's file. "This is Leia's first time at this clinic, right?" She looked up and gulped. Mike Lawson was looking at her, an annoyed look in his eyes.

"Yeah, well." He shrugged. "She's my ex's dog and I wasn't going to bring her to that fancy LA clinic where they give dogs mani-pedis." He held the dog out. "She needs her shots."

Ginny gently took the dog. The dog licked her face, wagging her tail so fiercely her entire lower body shook. Putting her on the table, she turned and looked at Mike. 

"I'm sorry, it's just...you're Mike Lawson." 

He looked slightly annoyed. 

"I'm Ginny. Ginny Baker. I had your rookie card, you've been my favorite player since-" 

"Don't..." He said, holding up a hand. "Finish that thought, you'll make me feel old and it makes you look stupid." He looked at the dog, "can you help her?" 

Ginny's stomach sank. Looking at Leia, she murmured. "I'm willing to bet she gets her temperament from her mom." 

"Be grateful that she didn't." Mike muttered. Ginny frowned at him. Well, she supposed it was true: never meet your heroes. Leia yipped at him, before licking Ginny's fingers. 

"Well, what shots does she need?" 

"Uh..." Mike blinked. "The usual ones?" Ginny looked at him in irritation. 

"Right, of course. I was top of my class in veterinary school so I could learn to administer "the usual ones." She scratched behind Leia's ears. Mike grumbled.

"So what can you do?" He asked. Ginny grit her teeth. He was officially an ass.

"I'll check her microchip." She said. 

"She doesn't have one." Mike said. Ginny frowned. 

"What?" 

"Ra-" He cleared his throat. "My ex didn't want her to get one. Something about an article she read about chips negatively affecting a dog's..." He trailed off as Ginny gave him a glare. 

"That's beyond stupid and irresponsible." Ginny muttered. "If she gets lost and doesn't have a collar a microchip would save a hell of a lot of hassle and now I'll have to get her vaccination records the old fashioned way."

"Old fashioned?" Mike said nervously. Ginny grimaced. 

"A blood test." Ginny said. Mike's eyes widened. So he cared about the dog; he'd regained some points, but he was still an ass. "The results should be back by the end of the week. If she needs anything, I'll contact you." 

Mike nodded. Ginny turned her attention to Leia. The dog was looking at her intently. 

"Hi, sweetie. Let's get your weight." She picked her up and brought her to the scale. "Can you sit for me?" She asked. 

"She doesn't..." Mike trailed off as Leia sat still. Ginny read the scale and nodded. Picking her up and bringing her back to the exam table. "How did you do that?" 

She pulled a treat from the jar on her desk and gave it to Leia. "Dogs respond to tone." She said. "If you say something in a nice tone, they'll listen. If you say something angrily, they'll get defensive." She threw him a pointed look. "It works on humans too." 

"Haha." He said, running hand through his hair. "She's been driving me nuts, barking all night, chewing my shoes." 

"I'm not a dog psychologist, but maybe she's had a disruption in her life?" Ginny said, checking Leia's teeth. 

"Well she lives in my house now, not my ex's." He sighed. "It's not disruptive though, it's quiet most of the time." 

"So a change in environment." Ginny said, pulling out her stethoscope and putting it in her ears. Leia's heart beat was strong and regular. No murmurs or anything else that would cause worry. 

"Well, my ex took her to spite me." Mike mumbled. "She invited me over last week, practically begged me to take her back." 

Ginny rolled her eyes. She highly doubted that it was true, but she decided not to contradict him. He seemed too caught up in his recollection to care. 

"And I didn't get back with her, but I took the dog." He gave the dog a half smile. Ginny glared at him. 

"I'm not sure I approve of people using a dog as leverage in a separation." She muttered as she opened a drawer to remove a needle for the blood test. Leia whimpered. "Hey, it'll be okay." She knelt so she was eye level with the dog. "It'll sting a little but after I'll give you another treat." Leia's tongue lolled out of her mouth and her lips pulled back in a smile. Ginny scratched behind her ears. "You're such a sweet girl." She said. 

Mike was looking at her, bewildered. Ginny arched an eyebrow. 

"Instead of gaping at me like a fish, maybe you can hold her? She's not going to like it when I give her her shot." 

Mike nodded, going to stand by the table, rubbing his hands in soothing circles on her back. The dog moved closer to him. "You'll be good for Dr. Baker, right?" He rumbled and Ginny noted that he had deliberately made his voice comforting, taking her earlier suggestion to heart. Leia looked up at him and barely flinched when Ginny inserted the needle. Drawing some blood, she grinned. 

"Good girl." She motioned to the jar of treats. "Do you want to give her one?" 

"She's going to get fat." Mike muttered, but he reached for the jar anyways, grabbing 2. 

"Actually she's a bit underweight." Ginny said. Mike's eyes narrowed. 

"What?" 

"Not seriously." Ginny reassured. "Are you feeding her dry or wet food?" 

"Dry." Mike said. "Once a day." 

"Alternate between the two and give her a little in the morning." She scratched behind Leia's ears. "As for her barking and chewing your shoes. She probably needs to get out more. There's this great dog park you can take her to." She wrote down the address on a post it. "It might be good for her to socialize with other dogs." 

"My friend Blip has a Yorkie." Mike muttered, taking the address and putting it in the breast pocket of his plaid shirt. Ginny tried to reign in her excitement. Mike Lawson had just told her that Blip Sanders had a yorkie. 

"Set up a doggy playdate." 

Mike ground his teeth. 

"Or dog hang out." Ginny rolled her eyes. "If if calling it that bruises your male ego a bit less." She smiled down at Leia. "Men are so emotional." 

Mike chuckled, but it was short and his shoulders tensed with anxiety. "Are you sure her weight's nothing to be worried about?" 

Ginny nodded. "See the lab coat?" She pointed at her chest. "It means I know what I'm talking about." 

Mike nodded. 

"I'll contact you as soon as I have her blood work." Ginny continued. "And even if she's up to date on all her shots you should still set up an appointment for her to get micro-chipped." She gave Leia one last pat before going to the door. "All done!" 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The next day Ginny got up early and took her dog, Satchel, on a run. The dog park was about 5 blocks from her house and it did both of them good. It was enclosed, so she could let him off his leash and go ahead of her. He was a shy dog and preferred to stay close. That morning was unusually cool, and a haze hung over the park, which was bizarre. Ever since she'd moved to San Diego it had been dry and hot. Satchel was turning a corner when he was almost knocked over by a round ball of fuzz half his size. Jumping back, he hid behind Ginny, looking at the ball in suspicion. Ginny gaped as the ball rolled over and grinned at her. 

"LEIA" Mike Lawson's voice sounded as he ran down the hill. "Sorry, she's...." He trailed off. "Doctor Baker." 

"Mr. Lawson." Ginny said. Satchel, who seemed to understand that the danger had passed, stuck his head out from behind Ginny and sniffed in Mike's direction. Mike, for his part, looked surprised to see her, but his signature annoyed expression came back as he watched Leia waddle over to Satchel. Satchel lowered his nose to sniff at Leia who happily licked his snout. He pulled his head back, sneezing. 

"Leia." Mike groaned as Ginny laughed. 

"Satchel doesn't mind." She said. 

"He might bite her head off." Mike muttered. "I mean look at the size of him and he's definitely part Rottweiler."

Ginny crossed her arms. "And part Labrador. What's your point?" Mike blinked at her. 

"I-" 

"Are you saying I would allow my dog near another one if I thought he was dangerous?" Ginny cut him off. "I don't know if you noticed, but it's kinda my job to fix dogs, not hurt them." She scrunched her face. "And by fix I didn't necessarily mean... not that I don't do that; it's my job, it's just that it's not the only thing I do." She broke off. Mike was looking reasonably chastened. Leia was playfully darting in and out of Satchel's legs. Satchel was looking up at Ginny for help, unsure what to do with the ball of brown fuzz. "A dog's breed doesn't determine its character." She said, pulling up the sleeve of her sweatshirt. A small semicircle of scar points was visible on her arm. "This was the worst bite a patient ever gave me. Wanna guess what type of dog it was?" 

Mike looked at the scar and shook his head. 

"A Pekingese." 

Mike snorted. 

"Laugh all you want it's the truth." She yanked down her sleeve. "Satchel." She said, whistling. Satchel, grateful for the distraction, rushed at her legs, Ginny stumbled forward and grabbed the closest thing she could to stop herself from falling. Unfortunately that thing happened to be the beefy forearms of San Diego Padres starting catcher and team Captain Mike Lawson. He reacted, grabbing her waist and pulling her close so she was pressed against him. They were almost nose to nose. 

"Satchel, huh?" Mike said. 

"Uh huh." Ginny said, her voice breathy and higher than she felt comfortable with. 

"As in Satchel Paige?" 

Ginny didn't speak, just nodded. Mike had really nice eyes. Hazel with flecks of green. 

"And here I thought I was your favorite player." He sounded smug, even suggestive. Ginny didn't miss the way his hand was sliding down her back. She grabbed it before it could go any lower. 

"Well his name used to be Lawson, but I changed it." She gritted out. 

"Oh?" Mike asked. 

"Yeah, I met you and it turns out you're an ass." She pulled away, whistling for Satchel. He was still trying to hide from Leia's enthusiastic attention. She clicked his leash on and turned down the path to continue her run. She could feel Mike's eyes burning into her back as he watched her go. The last thing she heard before she turned the corner and left the park was Leia's mournful howl at having lost Satchel. Ginny kept jogging. Exercise was always a way for her to clear her head. She'd worked herself into a sweat before she realized it was time to go to work and that she didn't have time to go home first.  

"What a pretentious, stupid, gropey-" She growled as she and Satchel went into the clinic. Eliot's eyes widened as he took in her appearance. 

"Ginny-" 

"I'm taking a shower and changing." She said, letting Satchel off his leash. "Also it's bring your kid to work day." She added, motioning to the dog as he rushed over to say hi to Eliot. About 20 minutes later she'd cleaned herself off and was wearing the back up clothes she kept in her locker. Pulling on her lab coat, she walked out. "So." She said, smiling at Eliot. "Today's victims?" 

Eliot was about to reply when the door opened and a man walked in. "I have a delivery for Ms. Ginny Baker?" He said, looking down at his clip board. Ginny frowned; she hadn't ordered anything. 

"That's me." She said. The man nodded and opened the door to the clinic. 

"Bring it in." He called. Two more men carried in a large dog treat. Ginny's jaw dropped. Who....never mind. She knew who. Her eyes narrowed as the delivery man handed her a card. 

"To Dr. Baker." She read through gritted teeth. "I'm sorry, please accept these box tickets for the next Padres game and this small present for Satchel as..." She crumpled the note and threw it in the trash. "Yeah that's not going to happen." She muttered, going into her office. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

He was at the park the next morning with Leia. The second the Corgi spotted them she barked excitedly and charged, ripping the leash out of Mike's hand. Satchel froze, his eyes comically wide as though he wasn't sure if he should run or stand his ground. Mike walked over.

"Hi." He said.

"Good morning." Ginny's response was clipped.

"So, interesting thing happened yesterday." He said. "This woman, that I got really expensive tickets for, handed them back to the box office." 

"Huh." Ginny said. "Well, and this is just a theory. Maybe she doesn't like the idea that you thought she could be bought."

"Bought?" Mike looked upset. "I was apologizing."

"Most people do that with words." Ginny snapped. "Throwing money at a problem doesn't solve it."

"I'm not sure what I even did wrong." Mike muttered. Ginny scoffed. 

"Really? Let's start with you walking into my office while questioning my judgment, then move on to you implying that my dog might be a rabid monster followed by you trying to grope my ass." 

"I-" Mike began but Ginny didn't want to hear his excuses. 

"I guess you're all the same, aren't you? Think that a woman will just shut up if you tell her what she wants to hear or if you buy her something to cover up for shitty behavior." 

"I'm getting the feeling that I'm not the person you're mad at." Mike snapped. "At least, not completely." He amended as Ginny glared. He dropped his gaze. "We're scaring the dogs." he mumbled, motioning to them. Leia and Satchel were looking at the two of them, confusion and nervousness obvious. Satchel growled at Mike. 

"Here's a tip." Ginny said. "Talking to someone works better than giving her dog a weight problem." She frowned. "And box tickets suck. If I wanted to go to a baseball game, I'd get something closer, where I could actually feel like part of the game, not like I'm in some bubble, safe from everything that makes a baseball game a baseball game." 

"That a hint for next time?" Mike said. 

"There's not going to be a next time." Ginny said. "Stop trying to figure me out, Mr. Lawson; you suck at it." She turned and walked away. about  a foot away she was pulled back by Satchel. He was looking a Leia and whined slightly. "Are you serious?" She grumbled. Mike held up his hands. 

"Don't look at me. You told me about this park and that I needed to socialize my dog more. It's not my fault she imprinted on yours." 

Ginny huffed and whistled. Satchel whined but followed. 

The next morning Mike was at the park with Leia. Ginny sighed and let Satchel off the leash. He sat and watched as Leia came over. Mike was standing at a distance, clearly waiting to see what Ginny would do. She wasn't going to talk to him, she had more important things to focus on, like her morning jog. She let Satchel play with Leia while she jogged the perimeter of the park. The burning made her forget, because Mike had been right the day before. Part of her anger wasn't directed at him, but at Trevor. Even a year later the incident had still stung. She was on her second lap of the park when she realized she wasn't alone. She looked over at Mike. He was keeping time with her. 

"I misread the moment." He said, his breath coming out in puffs. "When I...I thought you were flirting with me and I'm sorry." 

Ginny gave him a jerky nod and sped up. Mike matched her speed, a cocky grin forming on his lips. She realized it was probably stupid to try and outrun someone who ran bases professionally, but she didn't care. Even if she'd picked the dress, a part of her was still the competitive ball player her father had wanted her to be. She strove to be the best and she would be damned if she let Mike Lawson out run her. She broke into a sprint. Mike adjusted his pace to match hers. Match, not outrun. She grit her teeth and with a final burst of energy passed him. Mike slowed, grimacing. She glanced over her shoulder, ready to gloat triumphantly, but....he was doubled over his hands on his knees. 

"You've got a pair of legs on you...in that you run fast." He said, straightening up, his back and legs cracking. "It wasn't me trying to make a comment on how great your legs look." He wince in pain. Ginny grimaced. 

"So it's true." She motioned to his legs. She'd heard that he'd had knee problems, but a part of her had never imagined that the Mike Lawson would ever not play for the San Diego Padres. 

"Well, I'm not as young as I used to be." He said. 

Ginny glanced at the ground. 

"I um...I have an away game tomorrow so...I won't see you in the morning." 

"Okay." Ginny shrugged. 

"Okay..." Mike said. "Just...thought you should know." 

"Fine." Ginny turned and was about to whistle for Satchel, when she paused. "Who's going to take care of Leia?" 

"She's staying with Blip's family." Mike said. "Maybe when I come back..." He hesitated. "If we find ourselves at this park at the same time...you can beat me at another race?" 

Ginny tilted her head. "I feel like that's elder abuse." She looked over at Satchel who was watching as Leia rolled in the grass in front of him. "But Satchel's never been good at making friends. He's too in his own head." She glanced at Mike. "So maybe he could see Leia." 

 

 

 

 

The next day, Leia's bloodwork came back. She wasn't due for any vaccines and Ginny had Eliot leave Mike a message explaining that. It was a slow day at the clinic. She was going over notes on her desk when Eliot stuck his head into her office. 

"There's a woman here who needs to see you about her dog. She said its an emergency and-" He jumped out of the way as a well dressed woman carrying a yorkie pushed into the room. 

"You're Dr. Baker?" She said. 

Ginny nodded, unsure how to respond. The woman looked her up and down. 

"Well now I understand why Mike's lost his head." She grinned. 

Ginny blinked. "Who are you?" 

 "Evelyn Sanders." She held out her hand. "And your number one fan, Dr. Baker." 

"How do you know who I am?" Ginny said. Then paused. "Did you say Sanders?" 

Evelyn nodded.

"As in-" 

"Blip Sanders is my husband." She waved dismissively. "He's amazing, I know, but tell me about..." She put the yorkie down on the exam table before pointing at Ginny. "You." 

Ginny rubbed her eyes, trying to make sense of the completely weird situation. 

"Don't take this the wrong way." She said. "But I don't know you." 

"Which is why I'm here." Evelyn said, moving around the office. "Mike's a good friend of my husband's and he went to visit Rachel. That never ends well, he mopes around for days. This time he took Leia, which, if you ask me was a long time coming. Rachel was fine with the idea of a dog but not with the actual responsibility of a dog. So he's in his usual post Rachel mood and then he takes Leia to the vet...and then all of a sudden he's...different." Evelyn tilted her head. "And then he came to me for advice." She wrinkled her nose. "Which frankly is a sign of sanity. I mean, I give great advice, but Mike's not great at accepting or asking for help from others." 

"And you're the one who suggested he buy me ridiculous gifts?" 

"God no." Evelyn said. "I said he should apologize and try to get to know you." She tilted her head. "What did he get you?" 

"Baseball tickets and a giant dog treat for my dog."Ginny mumbled. 

"Huh." Evelyn frowned. "Well, at least that's different from his usual routine of jewelry and huge flower arrangements."

Ginny frowned. "He's never bought baseball tickets for a girl before?"

"No." Evelyn grinned. "He doesn't get girls gifts that might inspire a connection past one night." Ginny looked away, focusing her attention on the yorkie.

"Is he okay?"

"Oh he's fine, I lied to get in here." Evelyn said, flippantly.  "So. This..." She pulled a pair of tickets from her purse. "Is for next week's game at Petco. Right behind home plate. And this..." she held up a pass. "will get you into the clubhouse." 

"Who says I want to go?" Ginny said, but she reached for them anyway. 

"Mike's a good guy." Evelyn said. "A bit rough around the edges and...doesn't make the best first..or second impression, but...once you get to know him, he's a giant teddy bear." 

"I suppose the beard helps the image." Ginny mumbled. Evelyn grinned. 

"I like you." She said. "A strong woman who doesn't take shit and has him spinning in circles. The two of us should hang out some time." She picked up the dog. "Oh one more thing. My husband likes dressing up this poor thing in stupid outfits. Can you give me a medical reason that he shouldn't?" 

Ginny blinked. "Sorry." She said. "Not one that I can think of." 

Evelyn sighed. "Could you make one up? Throw in a few big science words to make it sound believable." 

Ginny laughed. 

"Well." Evelyn said. "It was worth a try." She pulled out a card. "That's my number, I expect a call."  She walked out, leaving Ginny holding the tickets, completely bewildered. 

 

 

 

Mike wasn't at the park for the next few days. Not that Ginny was looking for him. It was her routine and he'd intruded on it. She didn't like unexpected variables and Mike Lawson spontaneously showing up to her morning work out was as unexpected as it got. 

It wasn't until four days later that he was there with Leia. She wasn't relieved to see him. If anything, it was just her being happy that Satchel would stop moping if he saw Leia. Mike was sitting on a park bench, sunglasses on. Ginny let Satchel off the leash. She waited for Mike to say something, but he just watched her. She put her hands on her hips. 

"Someone's in a mood." 

"My knees are... Less than ideal." He stretched them out in front of him. "And I really didn't need the ego bruising that running after you would cause." He watched as Satchel sat in the grass, happily watching Leia run circles around him. "Your dog has it bad." 

"My dog?" Ginny snorted. "Leia's the one who's flirting with him." 

Mike arched an eyebrow. "Are you insulting my little princess?" 

"Your princess?" Ginny snorted. 

"What happened to she's my ex's dog and chews up my shoes?" Ginny retorted. Mike crossed his arms and didn't reply. "So, how was the game?" 

"Giants won." Mike grunted. "We're playing the Cardinals next week." 

"Stellar recap." Ginny said. "You should be a sports caster." She paused. "Wait...the Cardinals?" 

Mike arched an eyebrow. "Yeah?" He asked. 

"Nothing." She ignored the swooping sensation in her stomach. "I just..." She didn't to tell him about Evelyn's visit and certainly didn't want to discuss Trevor. "I hope you win." 

"Yeah you do." Mike said. "Seeing as I'm your favorite player." 

Ginny rolled her eyes. 

 "Was it just the rookie card or did you have note books with Mrs. Mike Lawson written in them?" 

Ginny snorted. 

"I bet you had a big poster of me." Mike nudged her. Ginny tried not to think about the poster. 

"I know you're trying to cheer yourself up, old man." She shot. "But you flatter yourself way too much. When I said you were my favorite player, I was sucking up to you because I figured it might make you want to come back to the clinic."

"I'm hearing a change in subject," Mike said, smirking at her "but not a denial." 

Ginny looked him straight in the eyes. "I did not have your poster on my wall." Mike was staring at her intently. 

"Sure you didn't." He said, looking back at Leia and Satchel. "So, I'm going to need an appointment for Leia. to get a microchip." 

"Call the office and have Eliot set it up." Ginny said, getting up and whistling. Satchel reluctantly walked over. 

He's head over heels doesn't want to leave." Mike said. Ginny was about to respond when Leia sat in front of Satchel, blocking his path, her eyes wide. Ginny laughed as Mike grit his teeth. 

"Yeah." She said, shaking her head. "He's the one who's got it bad." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike saw her behind home plate the second he walked up. Lifting his catcher's helmet, he squinted, not believing what he was seeing, but there she was. Dr. Ginny Baker, wearing a Padres hat and jersey. Her eyes locked with her and she gave him a small smile. Briefly he wondered if she was wearing his number and unsure why that idea was so appealing for him. 

He was pretty confident about the game...until Trevor Davis came up to bat and looked directly at Ginny. He glanced over at her to see that she'd ducked her head, her shoulders tensed. Davis seemed momentarily surprised, then his entire body language changed. He was posturing. Mike gritted his teeth. He clearly knew Ginny but...how? and how well? He called for a curveball. Footage of Davis told him that he was overconfident and tended to swing outside the box.  He swung and missed. Mike smugly listened to the umpire call strike one. Davis grit his teeth. He wasn't going to put on a show for Ginny; not if Mike had anything to say about it. 

Davis hit a foul ball. He'd begun to run before it was called. Stumbling he had to do the walk of shame back to home plate. Mike lowered his head, unsure if the catcher's mask was enough to cover his smug look. Mike called for a change up...and Miller waved him off to throw his fastball. Mike grit his teeth as the crack of bat connecting with ball lanced through his ears. Davis took off. Sal picked up the ball and threw it to Javanese who caught it just a Davis made it to first base. 

"Safe." The umpire called. 

"Are you blind?" Mike shouted. Davis shot him a smirk, then turned his attention to Ginny. Mike glanced over at her. She wasn't looking at Davis or anywhere near first base. Her eyes were on him. He gave her a small nod before focusing on the next batter. 

 

 

 

 

 

Ginny's plan was to leave as soon as the game was over. However she hadn't factored in the tenacity of Evelyn Sanders. Before the game was even Over, Evelyn was at her elbow, bringing her into the clubhouse. 

After a wild run around the inside of the clubhouse, dodging reporters, saying hi to different Padres, Evelyn finally pulled Ginny towards the field. Sonny Evers had told her Mike was out there with Tommy Miller. 

"What did I say about shaking off my calls?" Mike's voice carried over the field. Ginny looked towards homeplate. Glancing at Evelyn, she whispered. 

"Should we even be here?" 

Evelyn smirked. 

"I thought the fastball was the best call." Miller replied. 

"Right, and of course because you've got so much experience in all your many years of baseball, the batter missed the ball." Mike's face took on a mock look of surprise. "Oh wait...no." He was about to say more when he caught sight of Evelyn and Ginny. Pulling off his hat, he ran a hand through his hair. "Ev...Dr. Baker." 

Miller glanced at them dismissively before looking at Mike. "Can I go now, captain?" Mike frowned at the heavily loaded sarcasm in his title and turned to berate him. 

"Mike's right."

It took Ginny a second to realize that she was the one who'd spoken. Miller shot her a look that was pure disbelief. 

"And what would you know about that?" He asked. 

Ginny swallowed. "Davis is a straight hitter. A fast ball wouldn't fool him. The way to have gone about it would have been to throw a curve or a screwball." 

Miller laughed while Mike's eyebrows rose in amusement. "Screwball?" He said. 

"Right." Miller turned back to Mike, "leave the baseball to the professionals and go back to playing with your test tubes, Doctor." 

Mike shot him a glare before turning back to Ginny. "As much as I hate to do anything that can remotely be considered agreeing with this guy." He jerked his head in Tommy's direction. "The screwball's practically impossible to get right." 

"I can." Ginny didn't know where this was coming from. Miller laughed and even though Mike kept quiet, he pressed his lips together to contain a snort. It was their disbelief that made Ginny's nervousness evaporate. Walking up to them, she held out her hand. "Glove." She said. Miller shook his head and opened his mouth, presumably to tell her to fuck off, when he was interrupted by Mike. 

"Give her your glove, Miller." 

Miller was about to protest, but one glance at Mike and the steely look in his eyes made him sigh and hand over his glove. Mike handed her a ball. 

"Show me what you've got, Dr. Baker." 

Ginny felt a thrill run through her as she turned and walked to the mound. She was about to pitch in Petco Park to Mike Lawson. It had been a while since she'd done this seriously, once in a while she'd throw a screwball for Satchel to get when they played catch. Looking back at Mike and Miller, she focused, emptying her mind of everything except for the ball in her hand and Mike Lawson's glove. She let the ball loose, watching as it spun towards Mike's glove. It struck the center of his glove with a dull thud. Mike's eyes widened and his jaw dropped. Miller had gone pale. Evelyn clapped. Mike straightened up and jogged to the mound. 

"What the hell was that?" He demanded. Ginny met his eyes. 

"My dad was a baseball player, almost went pro, but..." She shrugged. "I had an arm, he taught me how to use it." 

Mike looked dumbstruck. Handing her the ball, he glanced at it. "Can you do it again?" He murmured. Ginny nodded. 

He turned and walked back to the plate. Squatting behind it, he held up his glove. Ginny was dimly aware of other members of the Padres coming onto the field. She pulled her arm back and threw another screwball. There was a murmur of surprise and disbelief through the other players. Mike looked down at the ball in his hand. 

"Hey Miller." He smirked. "You can't even throw like a girl." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike skipped the ice bath, a decision he knew he'd regret later. After the revelation that Ginny had an arm, Evelyn had invited her to dinner at the Sanders house. He'd volunteered to drive her. A quick shower and change and he was walking out to her. She was leaning against the wall, waiting for him...when Trevor Davis walked up to her. Mike watched as he tried to talk to her, but she brushed him off; her stance completely uncomfortable. Then he said something that made her entire body freeze. 

"Everything good, Dr. Baker?" He said, walking up to her. Ginny nodded, shaking off whatever Davis had told her and moving away towards Mike. Davis' eyes narrowed. 

"Ginny." He said. "I'm sorry about..

 "It doesn't matter." She brushed him off. Walking out of the park, she stopped in front of parking garage. "Today was fun, but...I should go." 

Mike frowned. "Why? I mean we were going to dinner." 

Ginny seemed nervous. "Look, I..." She bit her lip. "I have an early day tomorrow and-" 

"I don't see why-" 

"What are we doing, Mike?" She looked at him. "You're clearly still hung up on your ex wife and I'm..." She backed away. "This is a bad idea, I mean, your dog is my patient." She turned and ran. Mike was dumbfound. He shook his head, not sure what to make of her. Getting in his car, he wondered what the hell Davis could have said to upset her. The Ginny who'd run from him just now was nothing like the confident woman who'd pitched 2 perfect screwballs to him. He drove to the Sanders house. Evelyn opened the door and looked behind him. Seeing the lack of Ginny, she frowned. 

"I didn't do anything, I swear." He said. 

"Seriously, Mike." She stepped aside, ushering him in. 

"I didn't." He insisted as he walked into the house. The twins ran up to him and jumped on him. He staggered under their weight "She just...ran." 

"Uh huh." Evelyn didn't sound convinced. 

"So." Blip said, coming over to him. "Where's the pitching veterinarian?" 

"Mike scared her away." Evelyn walked into the kitchen. Mike glared after her as Blip sighed. 

"I didn't." 

Blip looked at him curiously. "You're upset." 

"Well, duh." Mike watched as the boys went off to pester their mother to get a bit before dinner. "Having a woman run away from me kills my rep." 

"Mike you know you haven't had a meaningless fling in almost a month." Blip said. "A stretch of time that coincidentally lines up with you getting Leia back from Rachel...and taking her to a certain Dr. Baker." He opened the fridge and grabbed two beers. Mike took the one he held out to him and followed Blip outside. 

"What are you trying to say?" he muttered, opening his beer. 

"Just that you need to stop shooting yourself in the foot." Blip said. "I know you don't want to hear it, but you've never moved past what Rachel did to you." 

"I have moved on plenty." Mike smirked. Blip rolled his eyes. 

"That's not what I mean." He said. Mike knew he was right. He sat in a deck chair and looked up at the sky. 

"It's hard, man." He said. "You're lucky. The perfect woman just...fell into your lap, but..." He ran a hand through his beard. Blip sat in the chair next to him, leaning forward to listen. "I'm tired of being alone all the time." He looked over at Blip. "And for the record, it was Davis' fault." 

"Davis." Blip said slowly. "The Cardinals' catcher." 

"He...talked to her and...it freaked her out." Mike rolled the beer between his hands. "I'm not sure what to do." 

"Well." Blip said, a small amused look stealing over his features. "She's still Leia's vet." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictures. Trevor's phone had been hacked and now...she didn't flatter herself to think that she was important enough to cause them to be leaked and Trevor didn't have enough of an established career to make a real scandal, but...she still felt annoyed. Those were private pictures. It  was a violation. How could Trevor have been stupid enough to not check his cloud. 

She'd thrown herself into her work. Mike hadn't shown up to the park for the next three days. Ginny didn't know why she'd expected him to be. 

That night she was getting into bed when the doorbell rang. She sat up and walked over, wondering who would come by this late at night. 

"Dr. Baker." Mike's voice was accompanied by hammering at the door. "Please, it's an emergency." 

Ginny opened the door. He pushed past her, holding Leia. 

"She ate about half a bar of chocolate." He explained. Ginny motioned him towards the dining room table. 

"I'm going to need to induce vomiting." Ginny ran to the bathroom, opening cabinets, pushing aside bottles until she found the hydrogen peroxide. Mike was gripping the side of the table, looking at Leia, completely distraught. "Open her mouth." She ordered, putting a small dose in Leia's mouth and closing it. 

"Now what?" Mike asked. 

"We wait." Ginny said, scratching behind Leia's ears. 'What type of chocolate?" 

"Milk chocolate." Mike put a hand to the side of Leia's head. "She opened a cabinet. I don't know how, but I found her when she was halfway through it. It's bad, right? Really bad?"

"You came straight here?" Ginny said. Mike nodded. "Then no. Milk chocolate doesn't have as much of the chemical that's harmful to dogs. If she throws up, she should be in the clear."

On cue Leia began retching. Mike held her as she threw up the contents of her stomach.

"Good girl." Ginny whispered. Mike let out a sigh of relief and sank to the floor. "She's not out of the woods yet." She murmured. "I'm going to have to monitor her for the next few hours." She sat next to Mike and leaned against the cabinets. "She'll be okay." She said, putting a hand to his shoulder. He nodded, rubbing his face with his hands.

"Thank you." His voice was soft. Ginny smiled.

"It's my job." She said matter of factly. "Not to sound insensitive, but how did you know where I live?" 

"Evelyn." Mike said, he looked over at her. Ginny got up and walked over to the coffee machine. She pulled out two mugs. Satchel sat next to Mike and put his head in his lap. 

"Stop moping." She said. "She'll be okay." 

"I know." Mike said, rubbing Satchel's back. "She's got the best doctor." Ginny handed him a cup of coffee. He stood and accepted the mug. "So," he said. "The guys will not shut up about you and your flawless screwball." He took a sip. "Al's been threatening Miller that he'll hire you if he doesn't get his ass in line." He took Ginny's mug so she could pick Leia up. She carried her to the living room, sitting on the couch. Mike sat next to her. Leia wriggled so she was sitting across Mike's legs. Mike looked down at her. 

"You terrible monster." He said, giving her a smile. "You had me worried." 

Satchel walked over and bumped Leia's nose with his. 

"I like what I do, Mike." Ginny said, smiling down at Leia. "But if you ever need someone to put Miller in his place, I'd be happy to help." 

Mike looked over at her, his eyes looking over Ginny. "Nice shirt." he remarked, handing her her mug. Ginny looked down and swallowed as she realized she'd worn her Mike Lawson jersey to sleep. 

"It's laundry day." She said. Mike snorted. 

"So we can add shirts to the list, after rookie cards, posters-" 

"There was no poster." 

Mike smirked, lifting his mug. "Methinks the lady doth protest too much." 

"Methinks the man has an unjustifiably big ego." Ginny shot back. 

"Oh it's justified." Mike smirked. They fell silent as Leia let out a burp. Ginny rubbed her stomach. 

"She's fine." She reassured Mike. He scowled. 

"I'm not worried." He mumbled. Ginny hummed in amusement. "So what did Davis say to you?" 

Ginny froze, spilling coffee over her hand. "huh?" 

"Davis said something to you." Mike said. "What is it?" 

Ginny ran her fingers over the rim of her cup. "It's my business." She said. 

"Okay." He said. "Well, whatever it is...he's not worth you upsetting yourself over." 

"Oh?" Ginny arched an eyebrow. 

"Yeah, he's not a great ball player. Way too cocky." 

"Sounds familiar." Ginny muttered. Mike chuckled. 

"Except I had the talent to back it up." He said. "And what kind of self respecting catcher keeps himself clean shaven?" 

Ginny couldn't help the snort. "The type that doesn't want birds nesting on his face?" She drummed her fingers against the mug, looking at Leia. Mike grunted. "it ended badly with him. He...he lied to me, he kept telling me he wanted to get serious, that he was giving up baseball." She looked at her mug. "But he'd been meeting with scouts behind my back. He thought...he thought it would be easier for me if it was a surprise. Because he needed to handle me." She took a sip of coffee. "Then he um...tried to convince me that it was my fault he'd lied to me." She shrugged. "I left him and never looked back." 

"Good." Mike said. "I mean..." He ducked his head as Ginny looked at him. "He's an asshole." 

Ginny shook her head. "Well, it seems to be a catcher thing."

"And yet." Mike poked her in the shoulder. "You're wearing my jersey." 

Ginny looked at the ceiling. "Oh you're never going to let this one go." 

"Oh no." Mike smirked. "I have so many jokes planned for dinner." 

Ginny's eyes widened and she shifted, looking at the mug. "Dinner?" She asked. "Seems like the kind of thing I would have to agree to first." 

Mike smiled. "Ginny Baker." he said. "Once we find out if my dog isn't dying would you consider having dinner with me?"

Ginny tilted her head. "One condition." She said. "We bring the dogs." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lab Rotweiller Mix 

Rottweiler Labrador mix puppy:

 

 

Corgi: 

 

Is it obvious that I love dogs? 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Satchel Paige was the second African American player to be brought into Major League baseball and is still considered one of the best pitchers in MLB history as he had one of the longest careers. He started playing professional baseball in 1926 in the Negro Southern League and ended his career in 1966.  
> While Pitch made a lot of Jackie Robinson comparisons, I thought Ginny would be more likely to name her dog after a pitcher.


	8. Work of Art

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Painter, apprentice AU

Ginny scrambled around her apartment, trying to organize her paints and brushes. The doorbell rang. She swallowed, running a hand over her curls and straightened her smock. Opening the door, she smiled as she drank in the sight of Mike Lawson, famous artist, art teacher and currently her model. He smirked.

"Ready, Baker?" He said, pulling off his jacket as he walked in. Ginny nodded. Mike leaned against the couch. "So, how do you want me?"

"Shaved." Ginny shot back. Mike chuckled, running a hand through his beard.

"Not up for the challenge of painting the beard?" He said. "Afraid you won't be able to fully capture the majesty?

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Just get on the couch."

Mike didn't move, looking at her intently. "Just sitting on the couch?" He asked. "No other demands?"

Ginny sat in front of her easel, ignoring the flutter in her stomach, "Whatever makes you comfortable." She said, picking up a pencil to sketch the initial outline. Mike settled on the couch, sitting with his back against the arm rest and his legs out in front of him.

"Okay, Baker." He said, "Work your magic on me."

"My magic isn't going to be enough to get rid of those crow's feet, old man." Ginny smirked as Mike pouted.

"You're in a mean mood today." He remarked. Ginny put her pencil to her canvas and looked over at Mike. He was staring at her and her pencil almost slipped through her fingers. She started on his shoulders, taking in the curve of the muscles and the slight tension as he sat still. Ginny didn't miss the way a vein in his neck jumped as he watched her looking at him. Once she'd got the shoulders and neck she moved towards his chest. Mike seemed to be forcing himself to breathe slowly, but he was completely tense, alert. 

"Nervous?" She said. Mike let out a small laugh. 

"Your eyes are very...focused." He said. "They're warm, mesmerizing." 

"I'm guessing it's why you sketch them so often." She remarked. Mike leaned back, looking at the ceiling. "No moving." Ginny admonished, shifting in her seat as she thought of the sketch book that had gotten them into their current situation. 

 

_Cleaning off Mike's desk was a nightmare. For such a brilliant artist, he was horrifically disorganized. He claimed it was a sign of genius. Ginny claimed it was evidence she could use for her legal defense when she eventually murdered him. She was organizing papers when something fell out of the pile and onto the ground. Ginny rolled her eyes, bending down to pick it up. The leather of the spine was soft and worn making her wonder why Mike had kept this sketch book hidden from her when it clearly meant a lot to him. As she turned it over in her hands it fell open and she had her answer._

_She froze, transfixed. It was her, sitting and looking thoughtfully outside the studio window like she often did. The book fell back to the ground as took a step back, looking down at her fingers. Her cheeks burned. She hadn't told Mike she was coming to the studio that morning, but she figured he'd made a mess of his tools over the weekend and it would drive her crazy if she had to deal with his "organization". That's probably why this was on his desk. He hadn't expected her until tomorrow. She gingerly picked it up, unsure what to do, but curiosity won over and she turned the page. It was another image of her. This one was her hunched over a sketch pad. Each page was a drawing of her. One of her covered in splatters of paint. One of her lying on the ground from the day they'd done an outdoor painting. One of her laughing. Then there were more of her hair, her eyes, her mouth, her hands. She was touched by the amount of detail and time he'd put into each sketch and the way he'd drawn her. Simple, unfiltered, herself. There was no staging or poses and since she'd never seen him with the sketch book before, he'd done it from memory._

_She shifted, pressing her legs together as she thought of the intense way she'd see Mike looking at sometimes. Tracing her fingers over the gentle pencil strokes, she shuddered as she pictured Mike spending hours working in this book. He was a perfectionist and she knew he wouldn't have kept them if they hadn't met with his approval._

_There was a noise behind her and she turned abruptly. Mike walked into the studio and looked at her in surprise. "Ginny, I didn't think you'd...." he trailed off, his eyes zoning in on the book in her hands. He didn't move, his entire body rigid. Ginny didn't know what to say. They stared at each other, the only noise coming from the ticking of an old clock in the corner of the room._

_"Mike I-"_

_"If you want to leave-"_

_They stopped. Ginny furrowed her brow. "You want me to leave?" She whispered, her throat closing. Mike's eyes widened._

_"No!" He said. "I mean..." He flushed, embarrassed by the speed and ferocity of his answer. "I was trying to say that you probably think I'm a crazy stalker or obsessed and..." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I understand if you want to leave." He shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "I just need you to know, it's...I would never have let anyone see it. It's not like Trevor." He looked at the ground. "Hell, I haven't drawn in it, since..." He waved noncommittally, but Ginny understood. The first few months she'd begun working as Mike's assistant/protege, her boyfriend Trevor had been jealous. An amateur artist himself, he couldn't bring himself to be happy for Ginny and her opportunity to work with Mike. He'd begged her to let him paint her nude and she'd done it. But his jealousy and dislike of Mike made him try to force Ginny to compromise the best career opportunity she'd ever have to prove her loyalty to him. So Ginny had left him. And he'd taken his revenge by trying to sell the painting. Mike had found out when he'd seen her crying in the studio and paid 5 times the asking price to make sure that no one would ever see it. He'd left it, wrapped, on her easel the next day when she came into the studio and she'd shoved it into the back of her closet, never even looking at it._

_Trevor had made her feel sick, used, cheapened. As though he'd only seen her as a commodity to advance his own goals._ _Ginny looked back down at the sketch book, closing it and running her fingers along its spine. She didn't feel the same way about the sketches. They made her feel fluttery, nervous in a way that she hadn't in a long time. Mike's view of her wasn't anything like the overly sexual boudoir poses Trevor had made her do for his painting. He'd spent pages trying to capture her eyes, the way her hair reflected light, her dimples when she smiled. "You once said you painted because when you were little it was difficult to hold on to positive and beautiful things." She whispered._

_"Yeah..." Mike mumbled. "How drunk was I when I pulled out that line?" He was trying to deflect. The admission had happened during a rare moment of vulnerability but he hadn't been lying._

_"Do you think I'm..." She didn't know how to finish the thought, but he seemed to understand what she meant._

_"Like I said." He moved aside, clearing her path towards the door. "I get it if you want to leave."_

_Ginny walked forward and pressed the sketch book into his chest. He blinked and looked at her, uncertainty in his bated breath. Ginny looked down at her hand, feeling the cool worn leather under her fingers. "I...I think it's unfair." She said. "That you have so many of me and I have none of you."_

_Relief flooded Mike's features and he seemed to deflate as he gave her a smirk. "Want to draw the full Lawson, huh?" He said wagging his eyebrows._

_"I'm regretting not running into the street screaming." Ginny muttered, smiling in spite of herself._

 

So here they were, ignoring the elephant in the room. Ginny bit the end of her pencil as she tried to concentrate on not focusing too much on specific parts of Michael Lawson. She'd done life drawings before. Hell, she'd posed for life drawings before, but there was something about Mike sitting in front of her and letting her paint him that made her feel powerful. 

She swallowed, moving her attention to his hands. She thought of the callouses, the way he held a brush or the way they'd be stained after a day grinding paint because no store bought color could beat the handmade version. 

"Done my mouth yet?" Mike asked. 

She started, wrenching her gaze from his fingers. 

"My mouth." His voice was a low rumble. "Because that way I can talk."  

Ginny snorted, thankful for a distraction from the building pressure in her abdomen. "Nope, and even if I did, the model stays silent." 

"Pfft." Mike scoffed. 

"Those are the rules." Ginny said, her breath shuddering. She'd only looked at his hands.  

"Whose rules?" Mike demanded. She put down her pencil and smirked as she came to a realization. 

"You're nervous." She said. 

"No." His brow furrowed and he pressed himself further against the couch. "I mean, yes. I am." He dropped his voice. "I saw what you did to that bowl of fruit." It was a deliberate attempt to deflect. 

"It was abstract." Ginny looked at the ceiling, annoyed. He was never going to let that go. 

"I just don't want to suffer the same fate." Mike shrugged. 

"Uh huh, keep talking and I'll make your head true to size." Ginny said. "Though...I'll need a bigger canvas." 

Mike laughed. "No, the bigger canvas would have been necessary if you'd have taken me up on my offer of a nude drawing." The second the comment left his lips, he dropped his gaze. Ginny took a breath. 

"In your dreams." She retorted. "Besides...I didn't think you were serious." She shrugged, adding in an undertone. "Though I guess it's fair, seeing as you've seen me." 

"No." Mike's voice was clear, his answer quick. 

She looked up at him in surprise. "Trevor's painting." He'd bought. Surely he'd seen it?

"I didn't look at it." He said. "When I went to his studio it was under a whole stack of other really terrible paintings." He sounded disgusted. "So I paid him what he asked for and had him wrap it for me. I didn't look." He squeezed his his fists slightly and seemed to steel himself before meeting Ginny's eyes. "Nothing he could have painted would have come close to the real thing." 

 Ginny's breath caught. Mike grimaced. 

"I mean, seriously. He's not that great of a painter." He mumbled. Ginny rolled her eyes. 

"Couldn't help but compliment yourself, could you?" She chuckled, trying to break the tension, but when she looked back at Mike, he was staring at her, intently.

"I couldn't capture you either." Came the hushed admission.

"Oh?" Ginny's throat went dry. "You really didn't see it?"

Mike shook his head. "Not unless you want me to." His voice was soft. Ginny bit her lip, then came to a decision. They'd been dancing around this issue for too long. 

"I can't help noticing..." She said. "That you seem to be wearing more than this painting calls for." 

Mike's eyes darkened and he stood. Reaching for the hem of his shirt, he pulled it over his head. Ginny stood and walked over to him, running her hand over his forearm. "Like what you see?" He asked. 

"I'm trying to determine what paints I should use." She whispered. Goosebumps broke out on Mike's skin as her hand traveled up to his shoulder. 

"Really?" he said, shivering slightly as her hand came to rest on his chest. Ginny couldn't miss the way he pressed against her touch. 

"Can't really decide though." She continued pretending she was still focused on him as an artistic subject. "I think I need to see the rest." 

Mike looked down. "Well." his voice rumbled in his chest and she could feel the vibrations of it beneath her fingers. "Make any necessary adjustments." He raised a hand, about to brush it against her face, but hesitated. "This is your painting, you're in charge." 

Ginny reached for the button of his jeans, opening it. Pressing her hands to his sides, she slid them into the waist band of his underwear. Lowering them, she pushed his clothes down, feeling the musculature of his thighs. Mike let out a small groan, his eyes fluttering closed as he was exposed to the air. He hadn't been lying about his size. She pushed him back. He sat down on the couch, looking at her expectantly, kicking off his pants and underwear. She settled on his lap, straddling his hips. He was hard and each movement of her hips, brushed her core against him. She put her forehead against his, pressing down and rocking her hips against him.

"Gin." He groaned, his hands gripping her hips and holding her down, Even through her leggings, he couldn't miss how wet she was. "Gin..." She swallowed his groans, kissing him. His beard tickled her upper lip and chin. She opened her mouth and bit down on his lower lip. Mike growled and gripped her ass, pressing her more firmly against him.

Mike broke the kiss first. "Wait." he whispered. Ginny looked at him, dazed. "Did you figure out what colors you need?" She gaped at him until he laughed, tightening his hold on her and standing. Ginny wrapped her legs around him and gripped his shoulders. As Mike walked them to her room, she sucked kisses to his neck. Mike swayed, pressing a hand to the wall to steady himself. "Fuck." He groaned, somehow making it to the bed. He pulled her shirt over her head and looked at her. "You are...stunning, Ginny." 

She smirked. "I know." 

"Of course you do." He said, peeling off her leggings before tracing a hand up her thigh. "So wet, Ginny. Is that all because of me?" He sounded incredulous. She moved lower, trying to get his hand between her legs. "Slowly, Gin." He said, kissing her hip. "I want to enjoy this." She gasped as his beard tickled her hipbone, arching off the bed. "Like that?" He asked. She shut her eyes. 

"You said I was in charge." She said, turning them over. Mike looked up at her in awe as she reached for the bedside table, pulling out a condom from the drawer. She opened it. Mike's eyes rolled back as she slid it onto his dick, canting his hips into her hand. Ginny bit her lip, suddenly unsure how he was going to fit. Mike seemed to recognize her hesitation because he began rubbing his fingers in small circles, his mouth open as Ginny moaned. His fingers were thick, calloused and so controlled. She rolled her hips, his dick was sliding between her ass cheeks, hard and thick. "Mike."

"I've got you." He whispered. 

Her chest tightened and gripped his shoulders. "More." She demanded. Mike's eyes widened. Suddenly Ginny found herself pinned to the bed, Mike pulling her thigh up while lining himself up with her entrance. 

"You sure?" He asked. She nodded, her blood pounding in her ears; _More more now now_. Mike pushed into her and the air left her lungs. He pushed forward, stretching her, filling her as she quaked beneath him. He whined as her eyes rolled back and she came. "Shit, Ginny." He pressed his forehead against hers, pressing kisses to her lips, chin, and eyelids. "Easy, baby. God you look so beautiful. So perfect." 

She managed to breath and locked eyes with him. "Move." She gasped. "Mike, please, I -" He rocked his hips and Ginny dug her heels into the mattress lifting her hips up to meet Mike's. ""Aaa." She scratched her nails at his shoulder. A stream of curses and pleads and unintelligible growls fell from her lips, spurring Mike into moving faster, harder. Her vision whited out as she shook beneath him, pressing herself against him before collapsing, completely boneless. Mike let out a shout that sounded like her name, before pushing inside one last time, his fingers gripping her hips so tightly she knew they'd be marks the next day.

Ginny caught her breath, running her fingers down Mike's spine. His weight on her was warm and comforting and though she wasn't going to admit this out loud, his beard pressed against her neck was sending little shivers through her core. She never wanted to leave this moment.

"So, giving up on that painting?" He asked. "Because if this is your way of getting out of doing work, I have no objections with you slacking off."

Ginny glared at the ceiling, shaking her head. "If I could move, I'd hit you."

Mike chuckled, rolling onto his side and disposing of the condom before lying back down, looking at her intently.

"What are you thinking?" She whispered.

He traced a finger down her side, across the swell of her breast and over her stomach. "Just that I must have been out of my mind to think I could sketch you."

She wriggled, feeling a blush forming over her skin. Mike pulled her closer.

"Any time you feel like trying," She whispered as his lips began a burning trail from her collar bone to her abdomen. "I'm here." She twisted her fingers in his hair. "I'm sure you'd do better..." She stopped that train of thought. There was no need to bring up Trevor and ruin this perfect moment. Mike paused and she could feel his lips curl into a smile. 

"Can I see it?" He asked. Ginny's eyes narrowed. He pressed a hand to his chest. "For purely critical purposes." He smirked. "After all." He wagged his eyebrow. "I've seen the real thing." He dodged as she aimed a strike at his chest. "Come on." He rolled out of the bed. "Then we can ceremonially burn it." He looked around. "So...where is it?" 

Ginny threw a hand over her eyes and pointed. "Closet." 

She heard him shuffling through her closet before the crinkle of a canvas being pulled out of her stuff. There was the tearing of the wrapping paper and a sharp intake of breath. "Oh..." 

She lifted her arm and looked at him. "What?" 

"I just..." He frowned. "Don't 100 percent hate it." He looked back at her. "Though I think that has to do more with the subject than the technique." He glared back down at the canvas. Ginny huffed, annoyed. 

"You could stare at that ...or..." She sat up, leaning against the headboard. Stretching her arms in the air, she hummed as Mike's gaze snapped to her. The canvas clattered to the ground as he practically dove at the bed. 


	9. Two to Tango

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So this started out as a quirky, "Hey we're in a couple's dance class and neither of us have a partner" AU and devolved into something completely different. 
> 
> Oops.

Ginny walked into the dance studio, wondering how the hell she'd let Evelyn convince her that this was a good idea. Ev and Blip were taking dance classes and had pushed Ginny into going. Apparently, they thought it would be good for her to get out and do something fun. Walking up to the desk, she smiled and said. "Hi, I was wondering if I could take a class today?" 

The receptionist gave her a sad smile. "Do you have a partner? Because today's classes are only couple classes." 

"Um..." Ginny glanced at the ground and was about to respond when a man behind her said. 

"There you are, babe." He came next to her and put his arm around her shoulder. The receptionist frowned at him. He gave her a big smile. "See, told you I had a dance partner." 

The receptionist looked at Ginny for confirmation. Ginny glared over at the man and was about to chew him out when she caught sight of the plaintive look in his eyes. She gave him a considering look. "Can we talk over there for a moment..." she hesitated before adding. "Honey." 

He nodded, motioning for her to lead the way. "Look." He whispered, glancing over at the receptionist. "My ex wife and her new fiance are in that class and I really need a partner so I can get in." 

Ginny crossed her arms. "What's in it for me?" 

"Well, this way you get into the class and I'll buy you lunch after." He said. 

Ginny hesitated. On the one hand, this guy was probably a little crazy if he was stalking his ex wife in a dance class. On the other, this definitely beat another afternoon of pouring over law books while glaring at the boxes Trevor still hadn't picked up. She sighed and nodded. "Fine, but I expect a fancy lunch."

"Deal." He said. 

Smiling, she put her hand around his waist and walked them back over to the receptionist. "So it looks like I have a partner." She said.

"Uh huh." The woman replied, shaking her head.

"What's your name?" Ginny asked as they walked into the dance studio. Her dance partner scanned the room, looking at the people who were milling around before turning his attention on her.

"Mike Lawson."

Ginny's eyes widened. "Mike Lawson as in Lawson, Sanders, and Evers?" She asked.

Mike tilted his head. "I don't usually run into people who know my law firm off the top of their heads..." He arched an eyebrow. "You're not a criminal are you?"

"No." Ginny said. "I'm a first year attorney at your firm and a friend of Blip Sanders." Her boss. She'd agreed to go to a couple's dance class with her boss. "Ginny Baker." She said, holding out her hand. Mike nodded, ignoring the hand to study her.

"You wouldn't happen to be the Ginny Baker that Blip's always raving about? The law school student who managed to beat him in a mock trial and graduated from Harvard Law when she was 23?"

"The very same."  She said. Mike's brow furrowed. 

"Huh, thought you'd be..." 

"Be what?" Ginny demanded. 

"Well Blip described you as a take no prisoners, hard hitting lawyer...I never thought you'd be so..." He raked his eyes over her body and she felt heat rising to her face. 

Ginny gritted her teeth to try to contain her emotions. She'd gotten shit for her looks for years. Everyone thought that because she was young and a woman, she wouldn't know how to handle herself in a court room. "Were you expecting a bulldog in heels?" She snapped. "I'll have you know that I skipped 2 grades as a child and finished my undergrad in 3 and was valedictorian while starting law school my senior year. I maintained a 4.0 gpa and passed the Bar on my first attempt. This is what a hard hitting take no prisoners lawyer looks like, Mr. Lawson." She crossed her arms, waiting for him to say something. It crossed her mind that it was probably very stupid to yell at a man who could fire her, but she hadn't worked this hard to have some asshole leader of the boy's club ogle her boobs. 

Mike blinked and grinned. "I'm glad to see Blip was right about you." He said. "And I'm glad that I don't have to face you in court." 

"If you keep your eyes up here then you won't have to." Ginny retorted, eliciting a chuckle from Mike. His amused expression faltered when a petite red headed woman walked in, her arm around a man with dark hair. Ginny glanced over at them. "I'm assuming that's your ex wife." 

He gave her a jerky nod, tracking their movements across the room. When the red head noticed them, she beamed and walked over, pulling her partner along with her. Ginny arched an eyebrow. What kind of weird relationship did these two have? 

"Mike, you hate dancing." She said, ignoring Ginny and effectively blocking her by pulling her dance partner between her and Mike. 

"I..." Mike seemed flustered, even nervous. "Well-" 

"It was my idea." Ginny said quickly, not realizing she'd spoken until the sentence was halfway out of her mouth. The red head looked at her in surprise as though she'd forgotten she was there. Mike looked relieved. 

"This is Ginny." He said. "Ginny, this is Rachel and Dave." 

"I actually prefer David." David said. He had a crisp English affect and a warm smile. He shook Ginny's hand. Rachel, on the other hand, was looking at her suspiciously. Ginny gulped. She'd never met District Attorney Rachel Patrick, but she'd heard enough about her to be intimidated. 

"I didn't know Mike was seeing someone _exclusively_." Something about the way she said the word made Mike's face pale. "How did you two meet?" Rachel asked, her voice light and pleasant. Fortunately before either of them could answer, the dance teacher began the class. 

 

 

 

 

 

This was crazy, Mike thought to himself as he watched Rachel and David go to the other side of the class, leaving him with Ginny. Ginny gave him a nervous smile. She was almost half his age and his employee. This had to be against the rules, to say nothing of the lecture he'd get from Blip when he found out. 

"Alright, dancers." The dance instructor, a short bottle blonde wearing a flowy black dress and heels tapped her foot. Mike noticed that Ginny glanced down at her feet. She was wearing socks and sneakers. She kicked them off, and nervously fidgetted. A quick look around the room revealed that all the other women were wearing heels. "The tango." The teacher said, moving as though she was dancing with an invisible partner. "Is seduction." 

Ginny's eyes bugged out and Mike knew how she felt. He could feel Rachel smirking at him and focused on the teacher. She probably suspected that he and Ginny weren't a couple and was enjoying him being uncomfortable. 

"You must anticipate your partner, know them." 

Ginny swallowed and gave him a shaky smile. "This...should be fun?" She shrugged. 

Mike nodded, wondering how he'd managed to work at the same law firm as her without noticing her. It was probably a good thing, he realized as the teacher kept going on about sensuality and touch. This class was definitely the type of thing that could get him a visit from HR. Hell, he was probably going to go straight to the office afterwards to throw himself at their mercy. 

"If you want out." He leaned forward so no one around them could hear. "I get it and I'll make it up to you with lots of apology coffee." 

Ginny turned her head slightly, a small smile showing her dimples. "Coffee?" 

"The lifeblood of lawyers like us." Mike replied and Ginny turned to give him a full smile. 

"Perfect." A voice interrupted before she could respond. 

The two of them turned to find the entire class's attention on them. Mike couldn't shake the feeling that he'd been caught doing something he shouldn't have. The teacher was walking towards them, grinning from ear to ear. 

"This is the connection we need." She put her hands on their shoulders and Mike didn't miss the way Ginny flinched. "I can see that the two of you burn with raw passion. Use it." 

Ginny's eyes were as wide as plates and she stepped back trying to get away from her, inadvertently bumping into him. Mike grabbed her around the waist to make sure she didn't fall. "Sorry." He whispered, letting go.  

"In fact." The teacher had a gleam in her eyes that Mike really didn't like. "I think I'll use the two of you for my demonstration." 

"I don't..." Mike panicked. "I can't dance which is why I decided to come to this class and she can't either..." He said. "We're talking stubbed toes..." He trailed off as Ginny gave him a look. Turning back to the teacher, she smiled.

"We'd be happy to." 

Mike followed her to the front of the class. "Are you nuts?" He hissed. 

"I will have you know that I am a great dancer." She hissed back. 

"And your way of proving that is pulling us in front of everyone to demonstrate the dance of seduction?" Mike said, as the dance instructor put his hand on her waist. He tried to move it higher in order to stay in a safe zone, but the teacher shoved it down so he could feel the curve of her hipbone. He swallowed, trying not to flex his fingers. Ginny inhaled sharply. 

"Not my brightest idea," She admitted in an undertone.

 

 

 

 

He was close, too close. Ginny tried to remain calm, but the fact of the matter was, she could get fired for this. He was her boss. As the teacher made them demonstrate the steps the rest of the class had to mimic, she tried to ignore the way his hand, no his entire body seemed to radiate heat. His beard brushed against her face and she swallowed. 

"Excellent." The teacher said, turning to the rest of the class. "Now do exactly that." 

"You can let go of me, Ms. Baker." Mike mumbled. Ginny dropped his hand and pulled her other off his shoulder, pulling back. 

"I can let go?" She shot back. "That's rich coming from the man who practically groped me." 

"My hand slipped." Mike murmured. "And it was because you fumbled one of the steps." 

"It would have been easier if your face hair hadn't poked me in the eye." Ginny frowned. The beard, she realized, was the reason she hadn't recognized him. The picture on the firm's website had been taken a few years previous and had been before he'd decided to go full jungleman. Mike stroked his chin. 

"The beard is a proud and noble tradition." He smirked, his eyes glittering with amusement. 

"Of what, being too lazy to pick up a razor?" Ginny asked.

"It's a big hit with the ladies." Mike glanced nervously at the teacher who was coming closer to them. 

"In their eyes?" Ginny suggested

"As a matter of fact, we've got an entire office dedicated to legal cases involving my adoring fans."

"Oh, so they handle serving you the restraining orders." For a second, Ginny thought she'd gone too far; Mike's face was shocked. She was fired, definitely fired. Then Mike's shocked expression turned into a full grin and he laughed. He had a nice laugh and his smile crinkled his eyes. A weird silence fell and for a second she thought it was because she was so enraptured by Mike's laugh...then she realized that the room had actually gone quiet. The entire class had stopped what they were doing to look at them. Ginny gulped as she caught sight of Rachel glaring at her from the other side of the room. She really didn't want to get into the middle of whatever this mess was between the two of them. This class wasn't worth it. 

"I just realized I have some amicus curiae I need to file for tomorrow." She muttered, sputtering out the first legal term that came to her mind. Fleeing the class before Mike can say anything and if she heard him call after her, she told herself she imagined it. 

She somehow managed to make it all the way back to her apartment without having a panic attack. By the time she pushed open the door to her apartment, she was sweating, her chest tight and her head spinning. Her roommate, Cara's worried tone throbbed in her ear as the world spun around her. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ginny entered the office the next day half expecting to have a box with her possessions shoved into her arms along with a pink slip the second the elevator doors opened. The paralegals and first year associates are all on the same 2 floors. She walked towards the office she shared with Tommy. Someone was sitting in her chair with their back to them. Turning her back to them, she took off her jacket. 

"Whatever kinky shit you and your wife got up to this weekend, Miller." She said. "I don't want to hear it. I have enough stress and frankly don't get paid enough to deal with the therapy bills." 

"Did you know we don't work for the Supreme Court?" The voice, that decidedly did not belong to Tommy asked. Ginny whirled around only to find Mike Lawson sitting in her chair, his feet up on her desk. Her jaw dropped. 

"Huh?" She said. 

"Amicus Curiae." He said. "The excuse you gave before you ran away from me yesterday." He opened one of her drawers, the one with the secret, not so secret candy stash. He smirked as he picked up a Kit-Kat. "Those are usually only used by federal court offices as communications between justices. Now." He opened the Kit-Kat and broke off a piece, popping it into his mouth while smirking at her. "I know I have an overinflated sense of self worth, but I know this isn't a federal court and I'd like to think the people we hire are smart enough to know that as well." He paused. "Which leads me to believe that you were making an excuse to get away from me." 

Ginny swallowed. "I'm sorry, Mr. Lawson." She mumbled, heat rising to her cheeks. "I didn't...I....I panicked and-" 

He held up a hand, chewing the candy. "I'm hurt, but I'm a big boy and I can take it." He put his feet back on the ground. His swagger gone, replaced by a look of contrite embarrassment. "I shouldn't have put you in that situation."

Ginny sagged in relief. She nodded. "Thanks for understanding, Mr. Lawson." 

He nodded, standing, examining her. He looked like he wanted to say more, but shook his head. "Well there'll be plenty of time to thank me on the way to court." He turned and walked out of her office. She stared at the spot where he'd been standing. He stuck his head back inside her office. "Baker." He said. "That was your cue to follow me." 

"Court?" She said. 

"Yeah, you're second chairing a case with me." Mike said matter of factly. "We're going to the bail hearing, then to the prison to talk strategy." 

"No." Ginny couldn't believe the world that had just come out of her mouth and from his furrowed forehead, neither did Mike." 

"...No." He repeated slowly.

"You're only doing this because you feel bad for me." She said. "If I second chair with one of the senior partners, I want to have earned it." 

Mike stared at her blankly, then pulled out his phone. He typed on it for a few minutes before handing it to her. She took it, reading an email between him and Blip. Mike was lamenting the need for a second chair and a general irritation with all the younger lawyers at the firm. Blip suggested that he take on Ginny as second chair because she was talented and hadn't worked with him yet so she hadn't learned to be annoyed by him yet. It was dated from 2 days before the dance class. 

"Oh." She said. 

Mike snorted. "I was going to ask you to join me on this case, but..." He sighed dramatically. "If you don't want it, I'm sure I can always ask Miller, even though..." His nose wrinkled. "If he makes a habit of talking about his sex life at work, I might have to call HR." 

"Not at work." Ginny said quickly. "It was at a bar and one time." She didn't want to get him in trouble. Mike nodded. 

"So, any more complaints you want to voice, or can we get to court. The bail hearing isn't going to wait for you, Baker." 

She frowned at him before grabbing her jacket. "I haven't even had my coffee." She muttered. Mike chuckled before leading her to the elevator. All of the other people on the floor were watching them. Ginny held her head up, challenging them to say anything.

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Our client's an important talent agent. She's also sent a lot of business our way over the last couple of years." Mike explained as they walked into the court house. "The good news is the DA's office is putting their new ADA on it. He's apparently good, but my spies tell me he's hot headed and undisciplined. We can use that." 

"What type of case-" Ginny began. 

"Mami." Livan Duarte's voice cut across her question. She turned and tried to hide a smile as her friend swaggered over to them. Mike's eyes narrowed. "I didn't know you'd be here today." He stopped in front of them, looking her up and down, taking in her suit. "You got a case or something?" 

"Yup." She nodded. 

"So you're going to free the criminals." Livan said, shoving his hands in his pockets, looking completely at ease. 

"Nah, I protect the innocent." She grinned. "I heard you got promoted to ADA." 

Before Livan could reply, Mike grabbed her elbow. "We need to go." he said, putting his hand on her back and walking to the door. 

She opened her mouth to protest but before she could say anything, Mike had steered her inside the court room and was pulling her over to sit behind the defendant's desk. Ginny wrenched her arm out of his grasp. "What was that?" She hissed. 

Mike looked over to where Livan had followed them into the courtroom. "I can't have you consorting with the enemy." He said, his voice low. 

"What?" She glanced over to where Livan was smirking at them. 

"The ADA assigned to our case?" Mike jerked his chin in Livan's direction. "That's him." 

Ginny's eyes narrowed. "Be that as it may, you put your hands on me again and you'll be representing yourself against Livan." 

Mike nodded. 

"What's the case?" She asked. 

"People vs. Amelia Slater." The bailiff called. A tall blonde woman was led into the court. 

"Mike Lawson and Ginny Baker for the defense." Mike said, motioning for Ginny to proceed him towards the table. Amelia Slater's eyes fell on her and Ginny shivered. Her eyes were cold, assessing. She stood between her and Mike. "Judge, the defense understands that ADA wants to prove himself to his bosses and thinks this case is good to get his face in the paper, but the bail amount is egregious and punitive." 

"Punitive?" Livan chuckled, shaking his head. "I think 300 million dollars is generous considering that your client murdered her husband." 

Ginny fought to keep her face empty of all emotion. She could feel Amelia's eyes on her.

"Allegedly." Mike said. "There's no proof, Mrs. Slater has a clean record and no history of violence. She's not a flight risk." 

"She owns a private jet." Livan interrupted. 

"She doesn't own it." Mike said. "Her business owns it, there's no way she can access it without approval from her company." 

"Ms. Slater is a wealthy woman, we need to ensure that she doesn't try to flee justice."

"Flee?" Mike shook his head. "She's done nothing but cooperate with law enforcement, even when it became clear that the police was biased against her. Probably speared on by an over eager Assistant District Attorney, hoping for name recognition."

Livan bristled. "I think defense council's personal animosity with the DA's office is causing him to lose perspective."

Mike tensed. Ginny looked at the table. Bringing up his ex-wife was a low blow, though Mike had gone looking for it. "My client." Mike grit out. "Is willing to submit to monitored house arrest if that will satisfy the DA's office, but there's no need to put an outrageous price tag on her freedom." 

"She's good for it." Livan retorted. "And considering what she did to her husband." 

"Allegedly." Mike cut him off. "The evidence against my client is circumstantial at best. I mean, can we even be sure he's dead? There was no body." 

"Enough." Judge Luongo banged his gavel. "Bail is set at 150 million. Next case." 

Amelia looked over at them, giving Mike a nod. 

"We'll visit you as soon we can." Mike said as she was led off to the side. He grabbed his briefcase, and looked at Ginny expectantly. 

"The Slater murder case?" she whispered. She'd heard about it; everyone who lived in San Diego or in the proximity of an internet connection had. Mike motioned for her to follow. "Why didn't you tell me?" 

"Because something tells me you wouldn't have accepted the second chair position." Mike muttered as they walked towards the garage.

He wasn't wrong. While most of the details were confidential, what she'd heard wasn't good for Amelia, in fact Ginny had been quite sure she'd done it. Mike stopped outside his car and looked at her. 

"I know that look." He said. "You think she's guilty." 

"I haven't ruled it out." Ginny muttered. Mike frowned.

"How about you talk to her first." He suggested. "Then see how you feel." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The house Amelia had shared with her husband was swamped with reporters. As such, she was staying in a private apartment that was owned by her firm. She opened the door, and looked them up and down. "Took you long enough. I made bail almost 2 hours ago." 

Ginny stepped into the apartment. She could feel Amelia's eyes on her back as she walked into the center of the room. The white walls absorbed all the sound, making her feel as though she was swabbed in cotton. 

"She thinks I'm guilty." Amelia's voice cut through the bizarre silence. 

Ginny turned to look at her and Mike. 

"Ginny doesn't have an opinion-" 

"Don't give me that bullshit, Mike." Amelia said, she moved closer to Ginny. "You think I'm  guilty." 

"I think it doesn't matter so long as I handle your case." Ginny replied, her tone flat. 

"Well it does to me." Amelia said. "I know how people see me. A woman only gets to my position being tough. I'm the ice queen and he was leaving me because I'm barren." 

Ginny's eyes widened as Amelia's voice wavered slightly. "I-" 

"I don't need your pity, Ms. Baker. But if you think I did this, then Mike needs to find a different second chair. The rest of the world already thinks I'm a murderer. I don't want a lawyer who agrees with them." 

Ginny looked in her eyes. She had a pretty good read on people. While she knew Amelia was cold, but the righteous defiance she was looking at Ginny with now didn't seem like that of a murderer. In fact, Ginny was sure that if Amelia's husband had ever crossed her, she would have publicly humilated him, not killed him. 

"I think..." She said slowly. "That if you'd killed him. You wouldn't have allowed yourself to get caught." 

Amelia blinked in surprise as Mike sucked in a horrified breath, his eyes darting between the two women. Then Amelia broke into a smile. "I like you." She said. "Let's see if we can't figure out how to keep me out of jail."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The crime scene pictures were...gruesome. Even more so at 11:45 pm after 3 days of grueling court proceedings. The jury selection had been difficult, because of the sensationalist nature of the trial and Amelia's notoriety, Mike had tried to push for the trial to be relocated out of San Diego, but it had been unsuccessful. He'd come back to the office angry, slamming the door to his office. The entire firm gave him a wide berth. Ginny understood; he'd fought hard and in the end, Livan had bested him. So she'd gone back to her office to look over the case again. Maybe she could find something, anything. Standing, she winced as her back cracked. She needed to go back to the firm's law library. 

Her phone rang. She frowned and looked down at the caller id. 

"Mr. Lawson?" She said. 

"So a funny thing just happened." Mike said. "I was in the law library looking for some stuff and all the books are missing." He paused. "Which is strange, seeing as they're not supposed to leave the building and I know no one else is here." 

"Who says they've left the building?" Ginny asked. 

"Baker..." He sounded, tired. "Are you in the building?" 

"I'm playing hide and go seek with the security guard." She admitted, glancing at the door. "He and I have this deal that as long as he can't see me, I'm not here." She leaned back in her chair, rubbing her neck. "It helps when I work overtime." 

"Overtime that I pay you for?" Mike asked. Ginny snorted. 

"No." She said. The door to her office opened and she jumped, turning in her chair. Mike was standing in the doorway, holding his cellphone, a smirk in place. 

"You do know it's against firm policy to let employees stay late." He said, hanging up the phone. Ginny arched an eyebrow. He shook his head, coming into the office. He'd abandoned his tie and had unbuttoned the top few buttons of his dress shirt. 

"I'm not going to sue you for exploitative labor." Ginny said, standing and  trying to put back on her heels. Mike shook his head. 

"Come on." He jerked his head in the direction of the elevator. "I've accidentally ordered a ton of Chinese take out and I can't eat it alone." He grabbed the books off her desk. 

"Um." Ginny was unsure what to do. Mike sighed. 

"Baker, I'm leaving here with these books, with or without you. This way we can skip the part where I fill you in tomorrow morning on the brilliant idea I've come up with to get our client acquitted." Ginny rolled her eyes, grabbing her heels and and walking to the door barefoot. Mike looked at her in amusement. 

Blip found them asleep in the office the next morning, surrounded by takeout containers and using law books as pillows. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It had been a week and Mike and Ginny were no closer to coming up with a plea. They were sniping at each other, 

"Baker." Mike said when she answered her phone. There was an inconsistency in his notes and he needed her to have a look at it. "I need you to have a look at my notes. Can you-" There was a click. He pulled his phone away from his face and frowned. She had not just hung up on him. He tried calling her again, but she didn't answer. What the hell did she think she was doing. About 30 minutes later she stormed into his office, wearing a pair of leggings, a sweater and had clearly just come from a run. His secretary was racing in after her. 

"Ms. Baker, I think you should wait outside You can't just walk in-" 

Ginny shot her a glare, causing her to back away and shut the door. She rounded on Mike. 

"It's Sunday morning." She growled. "Some people have lives, Lawson. Tell me you did not call me just so I could double check your chicken scratch notes." 

Mike's mouth hung open. "Um." 

Ginny began shifting from foot to foot, glaring at him impatiently. "Well?"

"I-" He began, but she cut him off. 

"I know that this case is driving all of us crazy, but I need my downtime and my morning jog is all I have left that allows me to hold on to my sanity." She growled. "If you take that away from me..." 

Mike bristled. He wasn't going to let her push him around in his own office. 

"A woman's life is on the line, Baker." He growled, standing up. "Or did you forget that?" 

"No, I haven't." Ginny's eyes flashed. "But we can't be at our best if you work us off a cliff." 

"I work us off a cliff?" Mike repeated, shaking his head. She was unbelievable. 

"Yes." Ginny said, crossing her arms.

"Baker, I think you need to go home and cool down."

"You know what I think?" She walked right up to him, getting into his personal space. He felt a rush of heat at her approach. "I think you're trying to prove something to your ex wife. You think that if you win this case, she'll fall over herself trying to-" 

"Baker." He growled, hearing his pulse pounding in his ears. 

"Well guess what, Lawson. It's not going to work and you aren't going to win this case if-" 

"BAKER." He shouted. She took an abrupt step back. They stared at each other, both furious and irritated. Mike leaned forward on the desk. They were both wound too tight, angry and on edge. He swallowed. "Come with me." He said. 

"Why?" She said. 

"Just once Baker will you just..." He groaned. "Trust me?" He turned and walked out of the office. He stopped in front of the elevator. He felt her come up behind him. She stopped next to him, her hands shoved into her pockets. She glared in front of them. The elevator doors opened and they walked in. When they closed, the silence was oppressive. Mike could practically feel the anger, nervousness and tension vibrating in the air. 

They arrived at the garage, Mike led them to his car. The drive was silent. Ginny was picking at the edge of her sweater sleeves. 

"Mike." Her voice was soft. He shook his head. She fell silent. After about an hour, he stopped the car and got out. It was a stretch of private beach. Ginny slowly got out of the car and looked around. 

"You aren't going to kill me, are you?" She asked. He shook his head.

"No." He laughed, pulling off his suit jacket and kicking off his shoes. "You're right. We can't win this case if we don't get our heads on straight." He said, walking to the water's edge. The wind blew on him, cooling his anger. His feet walked into the water. The cold, whipping around his ankles. He exhaled, letting the salt enter his lungs. 

"I met Rachel in college." He said, looking back at Ginny. She was standing, still in her sneakers at the water's edge, looking warily at the water like a cat. "She was...beautiful." He shook his head. "And amazing. I fell so hard for..." He sighed. "She's very all consuming. But..." He sighed. "Our jobs got in the way. We were so busy. It...drove us apart." He shook his head. "You're not the only one who has a deal with the night guard. Then one day I come home and...he's there and I realized that my wife didn't love me and..." He shook his head. "I was hurt and angry, but...mostly I was embarrassed." He sighed. "You're not wrong that I may have put some thought into how I could leverage a win in this case to get Rachel back." 

"I shouldn't have said it...that way." Ginny's voice was soft and Mike barely heard it over the crash of the waves. "I"m sorry." 

He looked back at her, shaking his head. "Don't be." He snorted. "I tried to call you into the office to check over a bit of bad handwriting in my notes." He shook his head. "Kind of a dick move." 

"Yeah." She agreed. Mike shook his head. 

"Come into the water, Baker." 

She backed up. Mike grinned. 

"Come on. You said it yourself, I'm making you lose your sanity." He wagged his eyebrows. "Do something crazy with me." 

"I don't..." She was fighting a smile. "I'm not going in there, Mike." She tilted her head. "You'll have to catch me." She turned and took off, running down the beach. Mike stumbled, his knees hitting the sand as he came out of the water. scrambling to his feet, he went after her. He caught up with her halfway down the beach. Grabbing her around the waist, he picked her up, pulling her towards the water. She laughed. 

"Stop struggling." He said. "We both know you could have outrun me if you really wanted to." 

"I figured I'd give you a fighting chance, old man." Ginny said. She let out a squeal as her feet hit the water. Mike waded up to his waist. The further he went into the water, the higher she lifted herself. She gripped him. Mike smirked. 

"Well this old man's knees are giving out." He teased, swaying. Ginny's eyes widened as he fell into the water, taking her with him. She splashed him in the face, but didn't drop her arm from his shoulder. 

About an hour later they were stretched out on their backs, their clothes drying as the sand caked their clothes. 

"I took that damn dance class to escape wallowing in my own self pity." Ginny admitted. "My ex....well he was less than understanding about my career. He tried..." She sighed. "He tried to use me to advance his. When I got the job at your firm...he was pissed and it..." She grabbed a handful of sand, letting it sift through her fingers. "It drove a wedge between us." 

Mike nodded. It was typical; a man being insecure about his girlfriend's success. "He's a dumbass." He said. "He just couldn't handle someone as amazing as you." He sighed. "Some men don't like successful women and the hit to their ego makes them crazy." 

Ginny's eyes widened. Mike frowned.

"What?" 

"I just had an idea." She scrambled to her feet and rushed to the car. He got up, looking after her, dazed. 

"Wait." He said. "An idea about what?" 

"I need you to drive to Amelia's." 

"Her apartment?" He said. 

"No." She said. "The house where her husband was murdered." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The sun was setting as Mike pulled up in front of Amelia's house. He cut the engine. "Want to tell me why we're here?" 

Ginny got out of the car and walked up to the door. "There was something off about those crime scene photos." She said. "I couldn't put my finger on it, but..." She frowned. "Then you said that thing about men and women who are successful and I thought, who's more successful than Amelia Slater?" She went to the pile of fake rocks next to the door, looking for the one the file said hid the spare key. She found it and walked over to the door. Opening it. 

"So what are we doing here?" Mike asked. 

"Something is off." She said, pulling up the flashlight app on her phone. "And I'm going to find out what." 

"Okay, Nancy Drew." Mike threw a glance around the room and shivered. Ginny didn't blame him; the house was dark and eerie. Now that the sun was sinking, there was a chill and the shadows were elongated and menacing. There was a creaking noise from the upstairs. The two of them froze. "Probably a cross breeze." Mike murmured. 

Ginny swallowed and nodded. "The blood pattern." She continued. "It was just....on the floor. There was so much of it that no one questioned how it had fallen." 

"Been watching a lot of law and order lately?" Mike teased, his eyes were looking around the room and he fidgeted. The noise from upstairs came again. 

Ginny shivered before continuing. "The blood was concentrated." She moved into the living room. "In this area. A giant pool of it. Now for that much blood the killer must have hit a major vein, meaning blood wouldn't have just dripped onto the ground, it would have splattered everywhere." She pointed to the kitchen island directly next to where the crime scene photos said the blood pool was. "There was nothing, it was clean."

Mike frowned. "What are you saying?" Ginny hesitated. He was probably going to think she was crazy.

"Have you seen Gone Girl?" She asked. Mike wrinkled his nose.

"And the sight of Ben Affleck's ass will haunt me til the end of my days." He's brow furrowed. "Wait...you think."

The noise from upstairs was louder this time. The first time had been suspicious, now she was sure; someone was upstairs. Mike pulled her behind him and put a finger to his lips. Then walked to the stairs. Ginny grabbed his arm. 

"What the hell are you doing?" She whispered. 

"Someone's here, I'm going to go check it out." He replied. 

"Those are exactly the words someone says before they get axed to death in a horror movie." Ginny whispered back. Mike shook his head. 

"Stay down here." He began walking to the stairs. "Actually, go to the car." 

"You must be outta your mind." Ginny grumbled. If he got hurt, it was on her. She should have waited for the next day. Mike glanced over his shoulder and glared at her. 

"Ginny." He warned. 

"I'm not letting you face whatever it is alone." She said. "So if you're going up there, I'm-" 

There was a clicking noise. They both turned to the stairs where a very much alive Steven Slater was holding a gun. 

"Clever girl." He said. Mike pulled her behind him. 

"You're surprisingly not dead, Mr. Slater." He said. "Which means that I am going to have such a fun time helping your wife sue you." 

"I was just collecting somethings to go to the Mexican border when your call pulled up." Steven said. 

"If you were smart you'd have gone there the second you faked your death." Mike snapped. Ginny frowned. If he was telling them this...she gripped Mike's shoulders, moving out from behind him. He wasn't planning on letting them go to the police. Steven chuckled. 

"You already figured it out. I'm not letting you out of here alive." He lifted the gun. The black gloves he was wearing stood in stark contrast to his pale arms. "Do you know how easy it is to put someone's finger prints on a gun?" He asked. "When they find your bodies tomorrow, Amelia's going to court for two more counts of murder." He lifted the gun and pointed it at her. He fired.

She fell to the ground, Mike's weight on top of her. He'd pushed her to the ground. Another shot rang out. Outside sirens were sounding. Steven hesitated, then took off, leaving the two of them there. 

"Mike." Ginny said, sitting up, pulling him against her. 

"Jus my shoulder." He groaned, gripping her arm. "And my knee....Getting shot hurts." There was so much blood. It was warm, flowing over her fingers as she pressed them against Mike's wound. His eyes were glazed over. 

"Mike." She shook him. "You need to stay awake." 

"Hmmm." Mike groaned. 

"MIKE" She shouted, her heart clenching. No. Not like this. Not again. 

The police burst through the door, guns raised. 

"We need an ambulance." Ginny said, her voice cracking as tears streamed down her face. "Please." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Beeping. That was what woke Mike. His eyelids were heavy and everything felt foggy. He felt disconnected from his body. Groaning, he tried to force himself to open his eyes. **_MIKE_** a voice shouted in his head.

"Oh Mike, thank god." A woman's voice said. 

He turned towards it. Another voice whispered, **_You're going to be okay. Please_**

"You're going to be okay, you lost a lot of blood." The outside voice continued. He frowned. It didn't sound like the voice in his head. It sounded wrong. 

"G-" His throat was dry and it came out as more of a rasp than a whisper. _**Mike please, don't leave, no no no.**_  

"Shhhh." 

His eye opened slightly, but he managed to catch sight of a flash of red hair. He shifted, uncomfortable. 

"Gin." He tried again, hearing her begging in his head. She sounded so scared.

"Mike, don't talk." Rachel said. 

"Ginny." He managed to say. He heard Rachel inhale sharply. 

"She's not here." She said, her voice cold. Mike heard the maching monitor his heart beat increase. What did Rachel mean not here? What had happened to her. "She's with the police, answering questions." Rachel was angry. "What the hell possessed you to follow her to that house I'll never know." 

"Not." Mike whispered. It wasn't her fault. Ginny couldn't have known Steven would be there or that he'd have a gun. There was no way. He couldn't let her take the blame. "Not her fault." He exhaled. "Ginny." He tried to get up. 

"Mike, you can't." Rachel put her hand on his chest, pushing him back down. The machine next to him was beeping. Doctors came in and in the door way, her face pale and her clothes covered in blood was Ginny.

Mike, she mouthed. **_MIKE_** he heard her wail in his head. 

"Don't let her in here." Rachel screeched. "She's the reason he's in here." 

"Ginny." He had to get to her. She hung her head and backed away. He felt a pain his head, his eyelids grew heavy and then everything went black. 

 

 

 

 

Ginny put her hands against her mouth and tried not to scream in frustration. Mike was stable, but from the harried looks in the doctor's eyes, he wasn't out of the woods yet. She should have just told him, she shouldn't have dragged him. She sank into a chair in the waiting room and covered her face, shaking with the effort of holding in her sobs.

"I hope you're proud of yourself." 

She looked up to see Rachel looking down at her with disgust. 

"Ms. Patrick, I-" 

"That's District Attorney Patrick to you." Rachel cut her off, she was shaking. "I will find a way to make sure you-" 

"Mami." Livan ran into the waiting room and let out a sigh of relief. "You okay? I heard you were in trouble and that someone had been shot?" He sat next to her and pulled her into a hug. Ginny put her head against his chest. 

"Mike Lawson's been shot." Rachel said, frowning at the familiarity her ADA was showing to Ginny. 

Livan gave a jerky nod. "What happened, Mami?" He whispered. 

"Steven Slater." She said. Livan scoffed. 

"Now's not the time to talk about the case." 

"He's alive." Ginny said. "He shot..." The words caught in her throat. "He shot Mike." She looked up at Rachel, anger growing. "You're going to drop the case against Amelia Slater and have your office issue a joint public apology with the police for the way you both mishandled this investigation and targeted my client while letting a clearly unhinged man frame her for a crime she was innocent of." She stood, glaring at her. "It's not my fault he's in there." She said. "It's not my fault." She shook, trying to convince herself she believed the words she was saying. "It's... not my fault." She sat back in the seat. She needed to know Mike was okay. 

About 2 hours later, a nurse came out of Mike's room. "He's awake and he's asking for-" Rachel made her way to the door. The nurse stopped her. "I'm sorry ma'am." She said, looking over at Ginny. "He's asking for you, Ms. Baker." 

Rachel's eyes widened as she stepped back. Ginny shakily got to her feet, moving towards the door. Entering the room, she swallowed as she took Mike in. He brightened the second he caught sight of her. 

"Ginny." His rasped, lifting his uninjured arm. 

"I'm sorry." she said, not wanting to move. He shook his head. 

"Nothing to be sorry about." He said. "It was kinda fun playing Scooby-Doo." He grimaced. "You know, minus the bullets." He looked at her. "Are you okay?" She nodded. 

"Why did you take that bullet for me?" She warbled her eyes warm with unshed tears. 

"Because I couldn't handle the thought of you in this hospital bed." He said. "Or worse." He lifted his arm again. She went to him, threading her fingers through his. "Did they catch him?" He asked. Ginny shook her head. "Can you stay with me..." He hesitated. "Until they catch him?" She bit her lip. "I'd feel a lot better if I knew you were out of his reach..." 

Ginny sniffed. "You scared to be on your own, old man?" 

"No." He huffed, tugging her down onto the bed. She sat next to him and curled into his side. "I'm going to be an invalid for a few weeks so I'll need someone to give me a sponge bath." Ginny groaned, covering her face. He chuckled. 

They sat in silence. "My dad." She whispered. "Died in a car accident a few years ago. I was in the car..." She swallowed. "He went through the windshield and...I saw him bleed out." She glared up at him. "Never do that to me again." 

Mike nodded. "Yes Ma'am." He put his head on top of hers. "It's not your fault, Ginny." He murmured. She shook her head, not ready to believe him just yet. "It takes two to tango." He smirked. "You know that as much as I do." She scrunched her nose. "What?" 

"Your beard tickles." She muttered. He grinned. 

"You love the beard, Baker." He paused. "So...will  you be staying with me?" 

She nodded. "Someone needs to make sure you don't do something stupid, like jump in front of a speeding bullet." 

"Hey, I was faster than that speeding bullet." Mike countered. "I'm your hero." 

Ginny groaned. He was going to be insufferable once he healed. 

"One more thing." He mumbled, his eyes closing and his breathing slowing. 

"What?" She asked.

"Once I manage to use my leg again..." He whispered. "Want to go dancing with me again?" 


	10. Assemble

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Avengers AU

Thudding noises filled the gym as the punching bag swung on its chain. Captain Ginny Baker threw punch after punch, glaring directly in front of her. She moved to keep the chill from settling in her bones. She moved to stop hearing Noah's voice in her head as he begged her to figure out a way to avoid crashing the plane. She moved to forget the engulfing darkness as the plane hit the water.

Thwack

Her punch went straight through the bag. She steadied it, watching as the sand spilled out from the hole.

"Taught the bag a lesson?"

Ginny looked up. "Director." She nodded, stepping back from the bag. "Something I can do for you?"

Amelia Slater walked forward, handing her a file. "We're calling you back in, Cap." She said. Ginny stood at attention, her jaw clenched. She took the folder Amelia held out to her. "The world is in danger." She continued. Ginny opened, her eyes skimming over the information. Gods, interdimensional beings. Then one word made her freeze: Tesseract. Her head snapped up, looking at Amelia with anger.

"They've got the tesseract?" She asked. Amelia nodded. 

"We've been holding on to it for safe keeping since we dug you out of the water." She explained. Ginny turned and began removing the tape from her hands, putting it in her gym bag. "You're the only person who knows anything about it, Captain Baker." She tilted her head. "Thoughts?" 

"Yeah." Ginny muttered, unhooking the punching bag and grabbing her things. Hoisting the bag over her shoulder, she turned and walked towards the door. "You should have left it where you found it." And me. She added silently. You should have left me. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike flew into Lawson Tower, frowning as he stepped out of his suit. "JARVIS." He called out. "What's this intruder alert?" 

"Me." Eliot came out from behind the bar. "Hi, Mr. Lawson." Mike sighed and rolled his eyes. 

"Tell Slater that whatever she wants, she needs to make a regular appointment like a regular person during regular business hours." He growled, moving past the agent to fix himself a drink. Eliot frowned. 

"She's got a mission-" 

"I don't work for SHIELD." Mike interrupted. 

"Not even to save the world?" Eliot asked. "You can't tell me that Mike Lawson is planning on letting the opportunity to have Iron Man be a global hero pass." Mike raised an eyebrow. The kid might not seem like much, but every once in a while, he'd surprise Mike. Mike grunted.

"and this has nothing to do with the Avengers Initiative?" He asked. Eliot's eyes widened. "Ah ha." He smirked. "Gotta say, Amelia must be real desperate if she wants me to join her merry band of misfits because last I checked, I was too...." He paused, thinking of the exact words in the hacked files. "temperamental and didn't play well with others." 

"You don't." Eliot said, handing over a tablet. "This is happening with or without you, Lawson." He turned and left the penthouse. Mike snorted, opening the files. The last time he'd gotten bored and hacked SHIELD, the files had only consisted of one angry rage monster who, during the day time was named Salvamini (SHIELD was apparently keeping tabs on him, but didn't have him in their inner circle), two senior specialist agents named Livan Duarte and Oscar Arguella, and an inter-dimensional demi-goddess named Evelyn. The last one wasn't on earth and there was no promise that she'd ever come back. Mike frowned at the list. There was a new addition. His eyes widened as he took in the name. Captain Genevieve Baker. He almost dropped the tablet. 

"JARVIS." He called, looking up at the ceiling. "Is this a joke?" 

"I do not believe SHIELD is in the habit of joking with intelligence, sir." The AI replied. Mike grit his teeth as he read over the file. After over 70 years they'd found her, frozen in the Arctic sea. He swallowed, looking at footage of her in her uniform in a solid block of ice. He'd heard stories about the legendary Ginny Baker, everyone had, but...she'd died. 

 Shaking himself, he sat down on the couch, sighing heavily. The world needed Iron Man, After all, what type of a team did SHIELD had if all they could find were myths and dead people? 

 

 

 

 

 

Ginny watched as Mike Lawson swaggered onto the jet, smirking as he dragged a bound Valkyrie onto the jet. She adjusted her shield, sticking out her chin. 

"Ginny Baker, in the flesh." Lawson opened his face plate and gave her an appreciative look. "How does it feel to be off Ice?" 

"I had her." Ginny motioned to the Asgardian, who was deliberately ignoring them. 

"Yeah, but it didn't hurt to have me swoop in and help." Lawson replied. 

Ginny's fists clenched. She'd seen women make advances in the 21st century, but it seemed that somethings never changed: like men acting like posturing jerks. 

"I don't need your help, Lawson." She growled, adjusting her shield and pulling down her cowl. Mike's eyes widened as she stepped closer. "Let's make one thing exceptionally clear." She growled, jabbing a finger at his chest. "I have been handling my own problems since long before you were born. I took out tanks, Hydra super soldiers, entire Nazi regiments and somehow managed to do it without your help." 

Lawson swallowed. There was a low chuckle from their prisoner. Ginny looked over at her. 

"You humans and your petty squabbles." She said. Outside thunder rumbled Valkyrie's eyes darted upwards; she was scared. 

"What?" Ginny asked. "Scared of a little thunder?" 

"No." Valkyrie's voice was soft. "Just not too fond of what comes next." 

Mike snorted. "Big bad demi goddess is afraid of lightning." 

The plane was pitched sideways. Ginny grabbed onto the closest thing to steady herself as lightning streaked across the sky, outside. Her back slammed against the plane wall, Iron man fell on top of her. She gulped as she realized she'd pulled him on top of her. They looked at each other, bewildered, then turned in shock as the bay door was torn open. The jet pitched again, sending Lawson flying backwards and throwing her on top of him. Standing in the opening was a woman with flowing hair, a cape and a hammer. She didn't say anything, just grabbed Valkyrie and left. 

"Guessing that was Evelyn." Ginny said, pushing off of Mike and scrambling to her feet. "We need to figure out a pla-" Mike didn't listen. Closing his helmet, he jumped after Evelyn. Ginny groaned, shaking her head. "Or we could just follow the immortal demi goddess without thinking." Gripping her shield, she jumped as well. They were flying low over a forest. Bracing herself behind her shield, she hit the treetops. Grabbing hold of a branch, she steadied herself, looking around, wondering how she'd find Lawson and Evelyn. She didn't have to wonder long. Thunder rumbled overhead and a bolt of lightning struck the ground around 20 feet away from her. Ginny dropped to the forest floor, gripping her shield, she took off in the direction. She'd made it 10 feet when a beam from Lawson's suit cut through the tree in front of her and she had to dive to the ground to avoid it. Glaring ahead, she could see Lawson fighting with Evelyn. Was he serious? Evelyn was supposed to be on their side. Getting to her feet, she inched closer. 

"Doth mother know you wearth her drapes?" Lawson taunted. Evelyn took a running jump and lifted her hammer, clearly intent on bashing Lawson over the head with it. While she understood the sentiment, she couldn't let her kill him. Running in between the two of them, she pushed Lawson out of the way, holding up her shield just in time for the hammer to connect with it. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

His ears were throbbing as he hit the ground. Blinking up, he gaped as the perfect pear shaped ass of one Captain Ginny Baker came into focus. Well, if he was dead, at least he had a nice view. 

"Are we done here?" Ginny asked. 

Right, the fight. Evelyn.Valkyrie. He got to his feet. Frowning at Evelyn, he watched as she and Ginny walked over to where Valkyrie was sitting, bound and glaring. "Well. That was juvenile." She shook her head. "Do all men on this filthy rock hit women?" 

Ginny grabbed her and dragged her over to the landing quinjet. She looked over her shoulder. "Can we count on you to join us, Mr. Lawson?" 

He shut his face plate, not over the sting of her having to intervene on his behalf. "I don't need help flying." he took off, beating the jet to the helicarrier by thirty minutes.He set himself up in an empty crew quarters, stepping out of his suit and running a hand through his hair and beard. Straightening the shirt he frowned at his reflection in the mirror. Who was he preening for exactly. Not Captain self righteous, right? He shook his head, he went to the meet the others. "Honey I'm home." He called out, swaggering onto the bridge. "Nice swing, Hammertime." He winked at Evelyn. His eyes swept the room before landing on Ginny. "Captain." 

"Mr. Lawson." Director Amelia Slater blocked his view of her. "So nice of you to join us." 

"Yeah yeah." He looked over at Ginny, trying to think of someway to thank her for saving him from getting clobbered that didn't make him sound like a loser. He came up with. "How do you not have helmet hair?" 

Ginny rolled her eyes. "We need to focus on figuring out what Valkyrie's next move would have been." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hours later Mike walked into an equipment hangar, trying to make sense of the sight of Eliot's broken body. Baker was standing off to the side of the door and looked up when he entered. 

"Sorry." He said. She only nodded in response, her expression neutral. She was holding a bunch of cards in her hand. Mike dimly recognized them as the Captain America trading cards Amelia had mentioned earlier. 

"It never gets easier." She said. He looked at her. "Seeing death." She continued. "I saw...terrible things in the war. And before that in the depression. You'd have people drop dead in the streets because of hunger or sickness that they couldn't afford to treat, but...it never gets easier." 

Mike rubbed a hand to the back of his head, unsure what to say. She looked at him. 

"You ever lost a man, soldier?" Ginny asked. 

"We're not soldiers." Mike growled. 

"Maybe you're not." Ginny said. "But Eliot was, of a sort. He knew the risks." She looked down at the cards. 

"Seems to me that you're trying to convince yourself." Mike grunted. She glared up at him. "Just a friendly observation." 

Ginny shook her head. "From what I heard you don't have any friends." 

Mike crossed his arms. He was not excited by the idea of Captain Ginny Baker looking him up. Nope, not at all. "They say things like that in encyclopedias?" He asked. "Or whatever pre dial up way you research." 

A ghost of a smile graced Ginny's lips. "If we're going by years I was actually conscious, Mr. Lawson. You're older than me." She lowered the hand holding the cards to her side. "I'm only 23." 

23, he looked at her in wonder. she'd only been 23 when she'd gone into the ice. She was so...painfully young and yet her eyes told him she'd seen things he didn't even want to imagine. She straightened her back, shifting to stand at attention. His scrutiny was making her uncomfortable and she was protecting herself by falling back on her military training. He'd liked the slight vulnerability he'd glimpsed. The kind, caring woman underneath the shield that he got the feeling not many people got to see. 

"What is it?" she asked. 

"It's just...you kinda blow me away." He admitted, wondering if it was because of lack of sleep or the shock of the last few hours that made him admit it so freely. "Even if you're a total pain in the ass." 

Ginny snorted. "I was a woman in the army, Lawson." She said. "There's not much you can say that'll get under my skin. My ego can take whatever yours dishes out." She was close. Mike noted a curl escaping from her ponytail. He reached to push it back, his fingers hovering inches from her face. She closed her eyes, almost leaning into his touch. they stood frozen, a heartbeat away. 

He was about to gather the courage to lean in when something hit him. "Ego." he repeated. Ginny blinked in surprise. He took a step back, his mind too focused on his realization to think of anything else. 

"Valkyrie is lousy with it and she's trying to undermine us and humiliate us. She'll do it publicly and in a place that's visible and associated with us when she begins her grand finale." He looked at her. "Any places spring to mind?" 

Ginny nodded. "Only one ugly shining piece of overcompensating architecture jumps to mind." She moved to the door. "I'm getting my suit." 

"I need to get to the Tower." Mike said, rushing forward as well. They jammed in the door. They stepped back. "I'll just-" He said.

"After you-" Ginny began. They broke off, unsure whether to move or wait for the other to do so. A crash from somewhere on the ship jolted them back to reality. Ginny was faster; out of the door and walking down the hall before he could blink. Mike went in the opposite direction to his suit. 

Hours later as he fell from the sky he wondered what it would have been like to throw caution to the wind and kiss her. The alien ships exploded above him as the nuclear blast went off, but he saw none of it. His eyes closed. Captain Ginny Baker's face floated in front of him. She was beautiful and amazing and completely unattainable. So why not picture what could never be before dying. 

"Lawson." Dream Ginny was looking down at him, her hair mussed from her uniform cowl, her face streaked with dirt, sweat, and...alien blood? Why the hell was he picturing her like this? His dying brain was freakier than he thought, oh well he'd roll with it. "Lawson." Ginny said again. "MIKE." 

He reached for her. "Wow...you're pretty." His armored hand bumped her face. She looked down at him, annoyed. His vision came into focus. He was lying in the center of Park Ave...Alive. "Bossy." He said, trying to sit up. "You're pretty bossy." His entire body was on fire. Ginny put her hand on his chest. 

"Don't get up, you'll hurt yourself." She seemed relieved. "We won." 

He nodded. "Great. I'll just stay here and sleep until 5 minutes after infinity." He put his head back down. 

"I'm pretty?" Ginny asked, amused. Oh no. She wasn't going to let him get away with his slip up. Though he supposed he could reasonably claim insanity due to almost dying.

"Well for a woman of your age." He quipped. "You're looking pretty good, grandma Baker." 

Her eyes sparkled as she looked down at him. She was trouble, there was no doubt about that and he briefly wondered how the history books could have omitted how much of a smart ass Captain Baker was. "That's Captain Grandma Baker." She corrected, pulling off his helmet. "And for the record, history knew how much of a smart ass I was. They just thought it would be better for posterity if no one else did." 

He shut his eyes. "New rule. No one is allowed to listen to anything I have to say until after I get a shower some booze and a good night's sleep." 

"That implies that we were listening before." Ginny shot back, her dimples on full display. Mike would forever blame the near death experience, but he was helpless to do anything but smile back. Oh yeah, he thought to himself as she effortlessly helped him to his feet to great approaching SHIELD medical teams. This was going to be fun. 


	11. The mummy's curse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Archaeologist AU  
> This is obviously extremely historically inaccurate.

Mike brushed a hand across his forehead and blinked away the sweat from his eyes. Wiping his hand on his pants, he grimaced as sand got caught on the back of it. Though it wasn't a surprise; there was sand everywhere. There was no escaping it when excavating in the Valley of the Kings.

"Man, why the hell are we digging here?" Miller groaned.

"We're making history, Miller." Mike growled. 

"Well you're definitely setting the record for most sand in a beard." Miller muttered. Mike shot him a glare before walking out of the excavation pit. The main tent was about 30 feet from the edge of the pit. He could see her bent over the table, conversing with her research assistant, Cara. He crossed his arms and watched. Dr. Ginny Baker, wunderkind Archaeologist, genius, scholar and current pain in Mike's ass. And speaking of asses...he shook himself, looking away from her. Heat stroke, he thought to himself. He could always blame it on heatstroke. 

"Dr. Baker." He called out as he approached. "Please tell me you've found something so Miller can shut his smug face?" 

Ginny turned, shutting her notes and glaring at him. "We're close." She tilted her head. "And Miller never shuts his face." She grumbled. 

Mike took a step back with his hands up. It was unlike her to show when she was upset. Ginny exhaled, her shoulders slumping. 

"Sorry, I'm a bit..." She shrugged. Mike nodded; they were all on edge, being in the desert made tempers run high and that combined with not having found anything made for an explosive combination. Ginny looked out towards the excavation pit.

"She's here." Cara murmured. "I can feel it." 

"...Riiiight." Mike said, frowning at Cara. For the most part, Ginny's research assistant was cool, but every once in a while she'd say something weird that unsettled him and she'd only gotten weirder the more they dug. 

Ginny nodded, "I've gone over every detail, every reference to her there is. I know most people think I'm crazy..." she trailed off. Mike shifted, scratching at his beard. Ginny smirked, following the motion of his fingers. "If you shaved, the sand wouldn't bother you so much." 

Mike let out a grunt. "So I should tell Miller to shut his face hole unless he wants to end up in the river?" Ginny shook her head. 

"I'm not okaying you drowning members of my team, Lawson." She couldn't help the smile that broke over her features. It was the first time her dimples had made an appearance for a long time. In fact, he was pretty sure he hadn't seen her smile since they'd gotten here. Now if he could just get her to laugh... 

"Drowning?" Mike continued. "Who said anything about drowning? Consider it me sending him back up river, without any need for fancy accommodations like a 'boat'." He made air quotes. The joke was lame, but it had the desired affect: Ginny let out her signature horsey laugh.  

"Dr. Baker." Amelia Slater walked over. She was on her phone and looked annoyed, though it might also be her resting face or the fact that Mike was there. She was sure he'd only signed on to this expedition to try and take some of the glory away from Ginny's discovery for himself. Something she made sure to remind him on a regular basis. "I've got Oscar on the phone, and he wants an update on his investment." 

Cara and Ginny shared a look. "We found some potsherds?" Cara's full tooth smile and slight shrug weren't reassuring. Amelia didn't even blink. 

"I'll field him off." She turned and walked back towards her tent. Cara dropped her shoulders and pouted. 

"How is it that some women can be in the center of the damn desert and still look like that?" She pulled the hat over her head. "If I even look at the sand, I'll get burned." She tilted her head. "I'm stealing her sunscreen." 

Ginny nudged her before turning back to Mike. "Lawson, go back to the dig site. I'll be over there in a minute." 

Mike shook his head. "Yes boss." If someone had told him he'd been taking orders from a newbie archaeologist not even 25, fresh after her dissertation, he'd have laughed them out of his office. For one, he'd all but given up on going into the field, but that was before he'd met Ginny Baker. 

 

 

_"Dr. Lawson?" Mike looked up from the paper he was grading. The young women in front of him was tall and thin with bronze curls held back into a ponytail. She didn't seem familiar, but it was hard to keep all the 200 faces in his lecture class straight._

_"Office hours are over. If you've got a question, read the syllabus." He said, looking back at the papers. He was distracted by her sitting in the chair across from his desk. He sighed, putting his pen down, fixing her with a glare. "Look..." He paused, trying to figure out if he could remember her name. She smirked._

_"Ginny." She replied._

_"Ginny." He repeated, unsure why she was so calm. "I'm going to say this as politely as possible. Come back during regular office hours or expect your grade to drop."  This is why he hated dealing with 101 students. Grade obsessed, too young to realize they didn't know everything and crazy enough to not respect boundaries. Teaching them was the bane of his existence. And why the hell was she still smirking at him?_

_"Dr. Ginny Baker." She said, pointing to the door that connected his office to the empty one next door. "I'm going to be moving in there and I came to apologize in advance for any noise." She stood, smoothing her shirt. "But feel free to lower my grade." She gave him a dazzling smile as she turned and walked out of his office. He blinked at the chair she'd vacated, unsure what the hell had just happened. He knew the department had hired a new adjunct and that the circumstances around them were so hush hush that even he hadn't been privy to the details. But he hadn't expected her to be so....young. What the hell was Oscar thinking? He jumped to his feet, going to the door. The other office's previous occupant had been an asshole and Mike had shoved a bookcase in front of it to avoid any fraternization. Pushing it aside, he ignored as some of the books crashed to the ground. Opening the door, he took a breath, trying to look nonchalant. Dr. Ginny Baker put a box down on her desk and smirked. "I'm sorry, I haven't set up office hours just yet."  She quipped._

_"You're the new adjunct?" He asked, noting that she flinched at the harsh tone of disbelief._

_"To answer what I'm sure is your next question." She stood aside and offered him a chair. "I'm 23." Mike felt queasy, lurching forward, he took the seat in front of her desk and sat down heavily. "To answer what your next questions will be after you process the shock," she went to the coffee machine in the corner, which was the only thing in the office that had been set up. Riffling through the box, she pulled out a Padres mug. "No, I did not get my PhD online. No I didn't blackmail any of my professors or sleep with them."  She poured some coffee in the mug and handed it to him. Mike took it and swallowed a big gulp, the caffeine sharpening his focus. Ginny sat across from him, amused. "I don't know why you're so shocked, you defended your dissertation at 26."_

_"Yeah, but..." Mike waved his arm, dismissively. "How?"_

_Her eyes turned stormy. "My dad was...Bill Baker." Mike noted her use of the past tense. Bill Baker had been an up and coming archaeologist before getting injured in a cave during an excavation. He'd dropped off the map. Mike hadn't known he had a daughter. Yet, here she was._

_"Ginny Baker in the flesh." He murmured, sipping his coffee. "The entire department's been buzzing about the new secret adjunct with their super secret research project." He noted that a muscle jumped in her neck as she met his gaze full on. She was probably waiting for him to dismiss her, but he was impressed. "Can't wait to see what you dig up." He stood. "I'd stay longer, but then you'd probably ask me to help with your boxes." He was halfway back into his office when he paused, leaning his hand on the door frame, turning back to look at her, he asked. "How did you know how old I was when I defended my dissertation?"_

_Ginny's look of self assurance faltered as she ducked her head. She was blushing. Mike turned, looking at her with renewed interest. "I've read almost every paper you've written." She admitted. "I-"_

_"Stop." Mike said. "It makes me feel old."  He turned and was almost out of the door._

_"Ahmose Ipwet."  She said. Mike froze, turning back. Surely she couldn't be that crazy...and surely the university wasn't following her down the rabbit hole. She stood, holding out a binder. "My dissertation and super secret research project." She said. "It's Ahmose Ipwet."_

_"She doesn't exist." Mike frowned, even as he walked forward, taking the binder from her._

_"She does."_

_Mike snorted at her stubbornness. "Baker, she's a fairytale told to trick people into getting people to choose Archaeology as their major."_

_Ginny tapped the binder. "I think you'll change your mind."_

So here he was, getting sand in places he should not have sand. All to chase down a legendary female pharaoh that Ginny was certain was buried here. 

"I'm regretting not skipping out on this to go to the Caribbean." He muttered. "beaches, breezes, water that hasn't been sitting out in the desert all day, booze." He climbed back down into the excavation pit. A few minutes later, Ginny followed him down. She was about to say something when Cara tripped and slammed into her. They tumbled down, Mike tried to grab Ginny but she was just out of his reach. 

"Ow." Cara groaned, pushing up her self up. Ginny rolled over and clutched her shoulder. A red spot was spreading. Mike didn't even think before he jumped, landing next to them. Ginny was hurt, nothing else mattered, not even the twinge of pain that shot through his knees as his feet hit the sand. 

"We need a medic." Mike shouted as he knelt next to her. Ginny waved off his offer of help, sitting up alone. She looked down at the ground, gently brushing off the sand where she hit her shoulder. Mike's jaw dropped as the corner of a brick revealed itself. 

"No fucking way." Miller whispered from behind him. Ginny's eyes were as wide as saucers. 

"I..." She swallowed, rising to her feet, swaying slightly. "I'm going to..." A smile broke over her face as she turned to Cara. The other woman squealed and clapped her hands, pulling her into a hug. Ginny gripped her. "We're going to need tools." She said, pointing to the slightly exposed brick. Pulling away from Cara she grabbed Mike's arm, hauling him up to his feet before slamming him into a hug. Mike was too stunned to do anything but wrap his arms around her. "We found it." She whispered. 

"You found a brick." Mike murmured, his brain going fuzzy as he felt her press against him. She pulled back to glare at him. "I mean." He added quickly. "You need to get that shoulder looked at. Let the others dig around and see what else we find." He knew she was stubborn, but he'd been doing this a lot longer and he knew full well the dangers of early celebration. Of thinking you'd found something only for it to be a rock or a fragment. He didn't want that for her; she deserved her moment in full, not the disappointment of an accident. 

She looked like she was going to protest further, but a quick glance at her arm revealed blood trickling down her arm. Blood loss under the desert sun was dangerous. Biting her lip, she nodded, letting him led her off to the side. 

Mike led her to a tarp, sitting her down and forcing her to drink something while her arm was being cleaned and bandaged. She was practically vibrating with excitement, he could tell she was counting down the seconds before she could go back. 

"Is it bad?" He asked the medic. He knew it was useless, but he was hoping for a medical excuse for her to sit still for 2 damn seconds. She glared at him, clearly reading his mind. 

"As long as she keeps it clean, it should be fine." The medic replied. Mike nodded stiffly as Ginny stuck out her tongue. 

"Oh very dignified, Dr. Baker." He muttered, running a hand through his beard. 

She giggled, getting to her feet. "I'm about to make the greatest discovery in archaeological history, I can be as undignified as I want." Her eyes widened and she swayed slightly. Mike steadied her, fear gripping his gut. She put her hand on his arm, squeezing slightly. Her eyes meeting his. The air left his lungs and for a second he wasn't sure who was steadying who. 

"It's a roof." Sonny Evers shouted. Ginny pulled away from him, going to the edge of the excavation pit. Mike followed her, ready to grab her if she fell. She was trembling with excitement. "The brick you fell on was loose; it's part of a tomb." He pointed to the section of the roof they'd cleared.

Ginny covered her mouth, looking over at Mike to confirm that she'd really heard him correctly.  "We found her?" She whispered. 

Mike nodded. "You did it, Baker." He grinned as she whooped, jumping into his arms. 

"Baker, your shoulder." He protested, but held her close, feeling the excitement thrum through her body. She pulled away first. Running towards the roof, shouting out orders. Mike watched her, bemused. 

 

_"Ahmose Ipwet," Mike opened the door and walked into Ginny's office. She frowned. He was holding the copy of her dissertation._

_"That door is made for knocking." She said. Mike ignored her._

_"Though her rule gave Egypt great prosperity, most of her subjects lived in fear of her and it was rumored that she was a powerful sorceress."_

_"That,"  Ginny mumbled. "Was probably sexist slandering. Powerful woman, has to be a witch."_

_Mike glanced up. "I've read the three pages where you explain that." He sat across from her. "And I was almost convinced, yet..." He put his feet up on her desk. "This next part kinda undermines your point." He cleared his throat and continued. "Feeling that she wouldn't be content with living on as a soul in the field of reeds, Ahmose Ipwet decided she wanted to rule in the afterlife." He paused, looking over the paper. "This is my favorite part because it goes full goosebumps."_

_Ginny rolled her eyes and pushed his feet off the desk. He laughed, turning his attention back to the paper._

_"To that aim, she created a ritual that would take the life force of others. Assembling a group of her strongest palace servants, she prepared to drain them. Unbeknownst to her, her high priests had devised a countermeasure. When she tried to begin her ritual, they killed her and trapped her soul, hiding her soul in a remote valley. Death incantations blah blah blah." He lowered the paper. "And this is who you want to dig up?"_

_Ginny sighed. "There were tons of tales about curses and magic." She waved her hand dismissively. "The Egyptians believed it was part of their everyday life. In all likelihood she lost her mind and was murdered or the male priests got tired of taking orders from a woman and spread this rumor as a means of justifying them removing her."_

_Mike frowned back at the paper. "And they buried her in an unknown valley...that you believe later became the Valley of the Kings..." He looked at her, amused. Ginny smiled._

_"She was an Old Kingdom ruler. The Valley of the Kings wasn't used as a burial site until the New Kingdom. Time moves on, sand shifts...people forget." She tapped her fingers on the desk. "At the time, above ground burials were preferred for pharaohs. So burying her underground was a form of disrespect." She smirked. "Come on, you remember how it was."_

_"Ha ha." Mike still looked uncomfortable. Ginny laughed._

_"Come on, Lawson." She shook her head, grabbing the paper from his hands. "Don't tell me you're afraid of an old ghost story."_

 

 

 

 

 

 

It took three days to find the door and another 3 days before negotiations with the Egyptian government allowed them open it. Ginny stood in front of the door of the tomb, raking her eyes over the hieroglyphics. She'd done it. After all the hard work and pushing from her father and fighting the doubt of everyone around her...She'd done it.

There was a whistling noise from behind her. She rolled her eyes. "You couldn't let me have my moment, Lawson?" She said over her shoulder. 

Mike came up behind her, squinting at the door. "He who dares open these doors..." He murmured. "Will....eat fruit?" 

Ginny rolled her eyes. 

"Wait..." He squinted at the carvings. "That could also mean suffer horribly." He sighed dramatically, glancing back at her. "Guess we'll never know." 

"Well you are the expert, seeing as you were there when it was carved." She said. 

Mike looked down at her. "One more joke, I dare you."

Cara materialized next to her. "So. We going to open it or what?" 

Ginny looked at the door. "One more second." She whispered, pressing her hand to the door. "I want to remember this." 

Cara opened her mouth to protest, but Mike shot her a glare. "This is your moment, Baker." He said. "Take as long as you need." 

Ginny swallowed, nodding. We're here, dad. She thought to herself. Stepping back, she cleared her throat, motioning to the door. "Open the tomb." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter is the first part of a full length fic called "The Mummy's Curse."  
> I hope you like it!


	12. Beyond Antares

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Star Trek AU 
> 
> Featuring Captain Michael Lawson of Starbase Deep Space 7 And Ensign Genevieve Baker. 
> 
> It's Bawson....IN SPACE!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I know I promised a part 2 for The Mummy's curse, but guess what? It got it's own full length fic. YAY. I might also begin another full length fic for another one of these AUs.  
> Thanks so much for reading! 
> 
> (Also because I'm an enormous nerd, I couldn't resist the tiny references to various Star Trek TV shows.) 
> 
> This takes place in the original ST timeline. Not the reboot. 
> 
> An overview of the Star trek species that are mentioned in this fic.
> 
> Terran (Just means human, specifically, born on Earth) 
> 
> Vulcan- pointed eared green blooded species from the planet Vulcan. Suppress all emotion in the pursuit of logic
> 
> Romulan- pointed eared green blooded species from the planet Romulus. Distant relatives of Vulcans who left after the society gave up being warlike. Heavily militant power structure, they are enemies of the Federation. 
> 
> Betazoid- telepathic species from the planet Betazed.

"How are you doing, Mike?"

Mike squinted at the view screen in his ready room. Vice Admiral Luongo was giving him a knowing look. How was he doing? He was trying to hold together a deep space star base, despite the fact that Star Fleet Command had decided to throw a photon torpedo in his crew roster. "Great question Al." He pretended to be thoughtful. "Well let's see, I've got a crop of new officers fresh out of the academy who I need to whip into shape in a mere 3 weeks before a Romulan delegation stops off on our base on their way to the renegotiation of neutral zone boundaries with Star Fleet command." He leaned back in his chair. "I'm peachy."

"That's the spirit, Lawson." Al said. "On the bright side you've got a pretty interesting crop of officers."

He was talking about Ensign Baker. Of course; everyone in the quadrant was. He was trying to suss out how Mike felt about the newly graduated officer. Well he wasn't getting anything out of him. He hadn't met the girl yet. He wasn't going to judge her based on rumor.

"Can I ask you something?" Mike said. "I looked over her aptitude reports and by all rights she should be serving on a Starship, maybe even the Enterprise... I hear they're finally building a new one." He stopped. Al gave him a look. They both knew the answer, Mike just wanted someone at Star Fleet command to own up to it. For all of the Federation's talk of inclusion and tolerance, prejudice was still rampant. All that Al would say in acknowledgement of his implication was "keep an eye on her." 

Mike's eyes narrowed, they didn't even know what type of officer she'd be yet. "I"m assuming you mean the same amount of scrutiny I'd give any officer under my command?" He asked. Al nodded.

"Exactly." The Vice Admiral seemed to relax. "As long as we see to eye to eye on this."

Somehow Mike knew they did not. He ended the transmission feeling sick. Leaving his ready room, he went into ops. The entire bridge fell silent, looking at him intently.

"What?" He said. "I know I'm handsome, but if this keeps up, you'll make me blush."

"We're being hailed by the USS Billings." Lieutenant Tommy Miller said.

The Billings was carrying the new Cadets from the academy. Mike nodded. "Tell the captain that docking station 17 is available to them." He walked over to the main command station. There was a silence. He sighed heavily, looking around him. Everyone was hyper focused on their work, fooling no one.

"Alright." He growled. "Listen up. You've all heard the rumors and I want it made exceptionally clear that the only thing I care about is how well someone works as a Star Fleet officer. Any of you forget that, and you'll have me to answer to. Understood?"

"Yes Captain." The answer was an irritated rumble. It hadn't changed anyone's mind. He knew it, but he needed it on the record that he'd said it.

"Good." He said. "I'm going to docking bay 12 to greet the new recruits. Commander Sanders, Lieutenant Commander Slater. With me." He walked over to the turbo lift. His first officer and chief communications officer followed. He let the turbo lift go for a bit before stopping it. Turning to Blip he said. "You know...Ensign Baker, right?"

Blip nodded. "And before you ask. Whatever you've read in those reports...she's better." Mike nodded, the clenching in his gut loosening. Turning, he ordered the turbo lift to continue.

"It was well said, Captain."

Mike looked over his shoulder at the his Vulcan communications officer. Amelia was staring forward.

"You addressed the issue without making direct reference to it." She continued. "It is a show of guile that a Cardassian would be proud of."

Mike grimaced. "A Vulcan compliment." He said. "Somehow they make me feel worse."

"The issue?" Blip scowled at him. The Vulcan didn't flinch, but then again why would she.

"That's how the crew interprets it." Amelia said.

"Ginny Baker is not an issue." Blip said. Mike looked at the ceiling.

"In and of herself, no." Amelia said. "If she proves herself as proficient as her Academy records suggest I believe we will be fortunate to command one of the best officers in Star Fleet...However, there will be those who will not be able to look past what she is." The turbo lift stopped. "I will not be among that number...nor will I tolerate any officer acting in such a way."

Mike nodded. He led them towards the docking station. He sighed when he caught sight of another member of his senior staff standing in front of the docking station doors. He glanced over at Blip before saying "Doctor, I didn't know we moved sick bay."

Evelyn Sanders gave him a smile. "Captain, what a coincidence that you be here."

"Cut the crap, Ev." Mike said.

"Fine." Evelyn sighed. "Ginny's a friend and I wanted to make sure she has at least one friendly face when she comes off."

Mike sighed. The doors opened. Mike smiled at the captain of the Billings. "Captain Janeway." He nodded at her. "You're delivering the fresh meat."

Janeway nodded, stepping aside. "I'm afraid I can't enjoy too much of your hospitality. I have orders to go pick up an ambassador from Betazed to help with the Romulan treaty negotiations." Some officers filed off. 2 humans, the second of which was wearing a red command uniform and smirked as he looked Mike up and down, as though assessing an opponent. Mike didn't like him already. Then she walked off. Ensign Genevieve Baker. 23, top of her class at the academy, born on the Terran lunar colony. Species: half Terran Half Romulan.

She held her head high, challenging anyone to say anything to her. She could almost pass for a Vulcan with her pointed ears, but...the eyes. Her eyes were alive, burning and determined. She had too much fight to be a Vulcan. A quality, he realized, that if she were a human, he'd find positive. She was watching him watch her. He tore his gaze away, taking the pad that Blip handed him. "Alright, officers." He said. "Here are your room assignments."

 

 

 

 

Ginny watched as Captain Lawson read off assignments. She'd been put to serve under Lieutenant Cara Syrax who ran stellar cartography. It was unsurprising, as a command officer she'd have to learn all the different operations of the ship. She was being started on cartography. She was relieved that Blip was there. He'd been a teaching assistant to one of her classes at the Academy during her first year there. And Evelyn. The doctor was practically brimming with excitement, no doubt wanting to hear everything that had happened since they'd last communicated. Ginny kept her expression neutral.

Then there was Captain Lawson. She couldn't believe that out of all the possible assignments she was going to serve under Captain Lawson. He'd become kind of legend at the Academy, having saved the majority of a freighter crew attacked by the Orion syndicate by piloting through a mined asteroid field left over from the days when the Federation was still in conflict with the Klingon Empire. He'd been promoted to Captain and sent to command this starbase. He looked quite different from the images of him she'd seen in the press videos. The beard was new.

"Your duty shifts are going to be found in your quarters." He said. "Welcome to Deep Space 7."

Livan smirked over at her. "Looks like we're going to be neighbors, Mami." He swaggered down the hall. She was about to follow when-

"Ensign Baker." Captain Lawson said. She froze, looking over at him. "I'd like to talk to you for a second."

She waited as the others left. Blip and Evelyn seemed like they wanted to stay, but Captain Lawson cleared his throat and they left, muttering promises of dinner in their quarters to her before walking away. It was just her and Captain Lawson.

"At ease, Ensign." He said. She put her bag on the ground.

"Captain Lawson."

"Ginny Baker in the flesh." He said. "The entire quadrant's been buzzing about you. You have no idea how many captains are bringing their ships by because they...just happen to be sector." He sighed. "I know it isn't because of me. I'm a bit of a narcissist so you can see how irritating it is."

"It's an honor to meet you, Captain. I find you inspiring, I wrote a paper on you-"

"Stop." He held up a hand. She fell quiet. "It makes me feel old and makes you look stupid."

"You're not old." She blurted out. "You're only the second youngest person ever to be promoted to Captain in the history of Star Fleet." He'd been 34 when he'd been promoted. The record was 32. He raised an eyebrow. "Is there a reason you wanted to talk to me?" She winced as he examined her. Insubordination on the first day was not a good look. She was about to apologize when she noticed his gaze lingering too long on her ears. Anger sparked. "Just so you know. I'm not a Romulan spy. I'm not planning on overthrowing the Starbase and I have 0 intention of using my feminine wiles to ingratiate myself to senior staff members and force them to do my bidding. I'm here to be a star fleet officer, that's it."

He gaped at her. She picked up her luggage and was about to go find her quarters when he called out. "I didn't dismiss you, Ensign Baker."

She froze.

"That was a particularly specific list of things you aren't planning on doing." He said. He didn't look angry, she noted as she turned around. In fact, he looked slightly amused. She relaxed slightly. 

"You'd be surprised what kind of insane things people can accuse you of when you're different." She mumbled. 

"Well you're only the second most fascinating person I've had under my command." He said. "So no worries." 

"Second most?" She asked. 

"Yup." He said. "I once had a joined Trill whose former host used to be a lounge singer for a Klingon outpost." He looked at her. "Face it; you're downright boring." He looked at her. "Point is, as long as you can do the work, I have no problem with you."  

"Thank you Captain." She said slowly. He nodded. 

"See you at 800 hours at Ops, Ensign Baker." He smirked. "That is if you haven't used your feminine wiles to enslave us all by then." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yup this one is getting its own story as well.


	13. 43

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well I have no idea where this came from, but here's the Stranger Things AU nobody asked for.

The lab lights flickered around her as she stood, breathing heavily. Tears streamed down her face as she looked around her. 

"What have you done?"

She flinched at the voice behind her. Papa. He was here.

"You killed them." She said, her voice flat. The lights above her exploded. "You said my family abandoned me." She looked up at the pale, white haired man in front of her. "You lied." 

He didn't even flinch. "You're being emotional." He said. "It's not good for you." 

"No." She backed away, lifting her chin up in defiance. "You killed my parents. You used me." She was shaking. The ground around her cracked. "You want me to hurt people. You hurt people." 

Papa sighed, his expression seemed disappointed. Tapping his ear, he murmured. "All units be advised, Subject 43 is unstable and violent." She lifted her arm. Papa rose off the floor and was thrown back against the wall. He slid down, looking dazed. She walked forward, glaring down at the man cowering at her feet. He'd always seemed so strong and powerful. He was none of those things now. 

"My name." She growled, wiping the blood that was trickling down her nose. He flinched back. "Is Ginny." 

Then she was running. Running far and fast. Away from the lab. Away from the men with the stun guns. Away from Papa. She needed to get far. Far away. She needed to make sure that nothing like this would ever happen again. A feeling rose up in her chest. It was similar the power she'd been using for years, but it was new powerful and strange. She was scared, but she also knew that it would help her. She could hear the soldiers coming. They were shouting, grouping. She gave in. There was a flash and she was pulled. Everything went white. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chief Mike Lawson grunted as he drove home from work. It was quiet because nothing ever happened in Hawkins Indiana. Huddling down in his jacket, he shivered against the cold evening air. The days were getting shorter and soon snow would be coming. The end of September heralded the end of warm nights. The sun sank behind the trees that were silent, devoid of all bird song.

Mike's frown deepened. That was strange. It was too early for them to have gone south. Shaking his head, he rolled his shoulder, focusing on the road ahead. He was really miserable if he was thinking about the birds to distract him. 

"Chief." His radio crackled. 

Mike picked up the radio, pressing the on button. "Yeah." 

"Are you coming?" 

Damn. He winced. He'd completely forgotten that Blip had invited him for dinner. It wouldn't take too long to turn around and go back into town. He was just about to reply when a large white light almost blinded him. Cursing, he slammed on the breaks, the car skidding off the road and falling into a ditch. He clambered out. The car seemed fine, it hadn't hit anything. He turned, glaring at the light. A figure was standing on the road. 

"Hey." Mike shouted, striding up, ready to give them a piece of his mind. "What the fu..." He froze. The figure was a woman. She was thin, wearing only a hospital gown, her hair shaved into a buzz cut. She looked up, her face pale beneath her brown skin, eyes hollow and blood dripping out of her nose. She was young. Mike could tell she wasn't more than 25. 

She swayed, her limbs shaking, clearly unable to support her weight. Mike rushed forward, catching her as she fell. She shivered as he held her. Looking around he wondered where she'd come from. Taking off his jacket, he wrapped it around her and picking her up. She had no id, that much was clear. Putting her in the passenger seat of his truck, he paused to look at her. There were marks on her arm that looked like needles. There were two more on her head on her temples. She was clearly a patient, maybe she'd escaped from a hospital.

He frowned. There were no mental hospitals in Hawkins and he knew the local hospital well enough to know they wouldn't perform electroshock therapy; Evelyn wouldn't allow it. They were close to the government lab, but as far as he knew they were doing soil studies.  

"Mike." The radio said, pulling him out of his thoughts. "Lawson where are you?"

Blip. Mike pressed the intercom on his radio. "Sorry, my car went off the road. I've got a Jane Doe here. I need you to run any missing persons on young women, black, approximately age 20 to 25." He let go of the button, glancing back at the mystery woman. "I'm going to the hospital with her-" 

There was a rush of static. Mike looked down at the radio, hitting it against his palm in annoyance. Stupid thing was always going out. 

"No hospital." 

He jumped, looking over at Jane Doe. She was still shivering, but her eyes were open and they were clear. 

"Look lady." Mike said. "I know it doesn't sound fun, but you clearly need help." He turned his key in the ignition and backed up the car. The car moved forward back into the ditch. He frowned and tried again. The key flew out of the ignition and into Jane Doe's hand. He gaped at her. She clutched the key and wiped away a small drop of blood from her nose. Mike gaped. 

"No." She said. "Hospital." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

She'd scared the bearded man. 

She knew that, but she wasn't sure where she was and if he took her to a hospital Papa might find her. 

He'd find her and they'd bring her back. She'd be punished and they'd force her to the bad place. 

"Okay." The bearded man said. "No hospital. But you need." He paused, clearly afraid of angering her. "You need to get checked out and food." He held out his hand. "Can I have my keys?" 

Ginny looked at her hand. She could always take them back if he lied to her. She looked up at him. "Are you lying?" 

He blinked before shaking his head. Ginny hesitated before holding out her hand. He took the keys, staring at her arm. Specifically the numbers on her wrist. Ginny pulled her arm back, pressing it against her stomach. She pulled the jacket closer around her, looking at the road ahead of her. 

He was staring at her, not turning on the car. 

"Did someone..." He hesitated. "Did someone hurt you?" 

"Yes." She said. 

He turned the keys, the car rumbling. He backed the car up and put it back on the street. He looked at her. "I'm going to my house." He said. "No hospital." 

"No hospital." Ginny echoed. The car moved forward. She looked out the window. She'd been allowed to see pictures of trees, cars, and streets and she remembered them from...from before, but she never thought she'd see them again. Pressing a hand to the glass, she felt the cold on the outside. It was so different from the cold of the lab. This was real. 

They drove further into the trees, finally he turned off into a side street. The road was smaller, twisting and turning into the darkness. He stopped in front of a square with a door. Ginny tilted her head, looking at it. 

"It's not much." He mumbled, his face turning red. She opened the door, stepping out. The ground was cool against her feet. There was a large amount of water next to the square. She walked to it. "Wait." He said. "It's cold." 

She ignored him, dropping the jacket on the ground and stepped into the water. It was cold, the ground slimy and making squelching noises as she walked forward. She looked up at the sky, seeing white dots. She'd never seen colors like the ones that were painting the sky. She opened her arms, breathing in. Tears rolled down her face as she let out a noise. She didn't know what it was, but it felt good. She was free. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Y'all   
> This is going to get its own fic.


	14. Off the Record

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Newsroom AU

"Remind me why I'm doing this?" Mike growled as he was bundled onto the soundstage. Blip sighed, shaking his head.

"We've been over this." He said. "This is going to garner good press."

"Why do I need good press?" Mike grumbled. "I am the press and good therefore any press about me is good."

Blip rolled his eyes. "Do I need to refer your attention to page 6?"

"Do I need to remind you that print media is dying?" Mike shot back, glaring around at the interns rushing around. "Get with the times."

"I suppose that your dates would keep you up to date with their twitterfeeds." Blip muttered. 

Mike huffed. "I'm going to embarrass a college student." He shook his head. "I was offered a prime time spot on CNN, you know." 

"And yet you're here." Blip said, shaking his head and adjusting his headset. "You're not going to embarrass a college student. She's a graduate student who's about to get her Master's in journalism. I've met her, she's good." He straightened Mike's tie. "You're here to inspire the next generation of TV journalists. This is your legacy." 

Mike huffed. "What's her name?" He grumbled, grabbing Blip's ipad. "Jenna? Gina?" 

"Ginny." Blip rolled his eyes. "Ginny Baker." Of course Mike knew her name. She'd been a whistle blower on her college campus' athletics department corruption. The pushback had been legendary and she'd almost been expelled. However, because of support from news media and public outcry in support of her, the university was letting her finish her degree. 

The door to the studio opened and a young woman walked in. Brown curly hair pulled back into a ponytail, minimal makeup and a black pant and blouse combo that was exceptionally flattering. Mike swallowed. Blip looked up at the ceiling, letting out a long suffering sigh. "Just...don't throw a pen at anyone this time." He said, pausing deliberately to glare down at Mike's crotch. "Or anything else." 

Mike coughed in disbelief. "I'm not insane, Blip."

 

 

 

 

 

Ginny steadied herself as she walked into the room. Taking a deep breath, she planted a smile on her face. She was just going to meet Mike Lawson, her favorite news anchor. No big deal. It wasn't like she'd thought about this moment a lot. Or practically everyday. Or that it was one of the defining reasons she'd gone into journalism. 

He looked different off of TV, she thought as she walked over. For one, that beard, which he'd started to sprout over the last couple of years wasn't as bad up close. She walked up to the desk and held out her hand. "Hi, I'm Ginny Baker." Not too breathy, not too excited; perfect. "I'm so grateful that you could do this, you're one of my favorite anchors, I've watched you since you were on Good Morning San Diego and News Night is-" 

"Nope." He cut her off, looking down at the papers in front of him. "Please don't. It makes me feel old and makes you look stupid." He straightened out the pile, turning in his chair and leaning back to look at her. "So. Ginny Baker in the flesh." She could feel the heat rising to her cheeks. "Well, your reporting of UNC's sport's scandal took up all my air time and was all anything could talk about." A smirk curled his lips. "Which was annoying, see I like the camera on me. They tell me I'm a narcissist." He motioned to the chair across from him. "So. This interview will be quick. A few questions. In out, easy peasy." He arched an eyebrow as she walked over to the chair. "Is it disrespectful to say that you might be the second prettiest person I've ever interviewed?" 

Ginny put her hand on the back of her chair, bracing herself before looking over her shoulder. They'd said never meet your heroes. Whoever they were, they were right. "Here's what's going to go down." She said. "I hope you got a good look at my ass as I walked over here, because that's all you're going to get. I worked really hard to be where I am and I am also aware that this interview was set up as a test to see whether or not I can play ball with the big shot news anchor. Well guess what, superstar. I don't care exactly how charming you think you are. I'm here because I care about truth. I almost lost my degree and any hope of upward mobility because I cared." She sat. "So we do this and then we see if I even want to be an intern in your office." 

Sitting down, she smoothed her blouse and faced the camera, her head held high. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Mike gaping at her, pulling himself together. fidgeting with his tie, his eyes narrowed. He was clearly not used to being told off. 

"Are all millennials this pleasant?" He asked. 

"Only when pissed off." Ginny folded her hands on the desk, putting her shoulders back. "Who was the first?" 

"Huh?" Mike Lawson looked back at her in confusion. 

"You said I was the second prettiest person." She glanced over at him. "Who was number 1?" 

He blinked. "Leonardo DiCaprio." He replied, looking back at the camera. "Beautiful eyes." 

Ginny scoffed. 

"Hey, I usually interview world leaders and politicians." Mike shot back. 

"Sorry to have you slumming today." Her brow furrowed. "Old Leo or current Leo." She rolled her eyes at Mike's confusion. "Old Leo was cute but current Leo looks like a fish." 

Mike chortled in spite of himself. Shaking his head, he looked down at the table in front of him. "It was an interview about his role in Gangs of New York." 

Ginny whistled. 

"What?" Mike snapped. 

"Nothing." She smirked. "That was just a long time ago." She couldn't be sure with the beard, it seemed like it moved in a way that hinted at a smile. Mike cleared his throat as Blip walked over. 

"Ginny." He said. "You playing nice?" 

"Always." Ginny grinned up at him. Blip rolled his eyes. 

"She was biting my head off." Mike muttered. 

"He was enjoying it." Ginny shot back. Blip's eyes narrowed as Mike turned to look at her in surprise. Sharing a look at Blip he asked. 

"Higher ups want her?" Blip nodded. Mike grinned. "This is going to be fun." He glanced over at Ginny. "FYI, when you start at the network. We respect Leonardo DiCaprio. Fish face and all." 

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [The Mummy's Curse](https://archiveofourown.org/works/10762038) by [Ellabee15](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ellabee15/pseuds/Ellabee15)
  * [Lady and the Tramp](https://archiveofourown.org/works/10766766) by [Ellabee15](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ellabee15/pseuds/Ellabee15)
  * [Beyond Antares](https://archiveofourown.org/works/10775949) by [Ellabee15](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ellabee15/pseuds/Ellabee15)
  * [How Ginny Got her Groove Back](https://archiveofourown.org/works/10941633) by [Ellabee15](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ellabee15/pseuds/Ellabee15)
  * [43](https://archiveofourown.org/works/12620452) by [Ellabee15](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ellabee15/pseuds/Ellabee15)




End file.
